The Legacy of Athena and Hermes: The Lightning Thief
by Yugioash
Summary: After losing their children to the Kyuubi in the Elemental Nations, Athena and Hermes takes steps while waiting to bring their grandson and their legacy Naruto Uzumaki to their world so he can train at Camp Half-Blood. But their timing ended up going bad when one of Naruto's school roommates turns to be a demigod son of Poseidon who is being framed for stealing Zeus' Master Bolt.
1. Naruto Arrives In New York

**The Legacy of Athena and Hermes & The Lightning Thief**

 **Naruto Arrives In New York**

The night the Kyuubi attacked the leaf village and Minato and Kushina gave their lives protecting Naruto, someone else was watching in another world—a beautiful woman with long black hair and intense gray eyes wearing an elegant white dress. Her name is Athena and she was the Olympian goddess of wisdom and strategy and Minato Namikaze's mother.

There was a flash of brilliant lights behind her. A middle-aged man with an athletic figure-slim and fit with salt-and-pepper hair, with elfish features wearing a nylon running shorts and a New York City Marathon T-shirt. He was Hermes—messenger of the gods and father of Kushina Uzumaki.

"I take it you found out?" Athena asked.

"How can I not," Hermes said. "It was bad enough when they made Kushina the Jichuriki, now because of some nutcase, she died and hers and Minato's son have to carry the burden."

"Minato didn't have a choice," Athena responded.

Hermes sighed. "I know, it's just—after what happened to May—I just can't deal with it. If that village mistreats Naruto, or if things gets out of hand where Naruto might not be safe there, I don't care what father says, I'm bringing him to our word.

"If it comes to that, I'll help you," Athena said.

…Twelve-to-Thirteen Years Later…

A blond spiky hair twelve to thirteen year old with blonde with a surfer tan skin, with an up turned eye brow pointy nose, three pencil line whisker like birth marks on each cheek and eyes that was strange mixture of Gray and blue was fighting his friend and teammate who left the village to gain the power of the Mangekyo Sharingan and of a Sanin.

They were fighting at a waterfall with two statues of their village's founders.

Toward the end red energy known as chakra formed around the blonde in a form of a fox—minus the snout—with one tail while the other boy's skin darkened, hair grew longer and giant hand formed from his back like wings.

The blonde hair boy formed a ball of spinning chakra while the black hair boy formed lightning in his hand. Both jumped at each other and clashed their attacks. When they did it, dark energy spread around them in a sphere.

By time it cleared. The blonde hair boy was unconscious while the other boy was about to kill him. But before he did, he decided to leave it be—for now.

After the black hair boy left there was a brilliant blue light before Hermes appeared.

Over the years Hermes and Athena been on edge to bring Naruto to his world, but when Naruto entered the academy he started making friends—even if Naruto didn't realize it. But now with signs of the Akatsuki rising and eventually going after all the Bijus, Hermes and Athena decided to act while they can and eventually working on a way to save Naruto's friends, including Gaara—the Jinchuriki of the Shukaku.

"Don't worry, Naruto. I'll take you somewhere that will help you with your training," Hermes said.

"Lord Hermes," someone said.

Hermes turned to see a man with gray hair that seemed to spike up and to the side, with a head band—with a metal plate that had a symbol that represents a leaf—over one eye and a mask that covers most of his lower face. Hermes recognized him as his son-in-law's student Kakashi Hatake.

"I'm taking Naruto to my world Kakashi, don't stop me," Hermes said.

"Why?" Kakashi asked, "Is it because how the village treated Naruto?"

"No, and neither Athena nor I would like to be reminded of it," Hermes said, "If it wasn't for the fact Naruto made friends in the Academy we would have took him a long time ago."

"Then why?" Kakashi asked.

"Because we know of the threat coming up, and we decided to help Naruto for it he should train to be a demigod hero," Hermes said, "If Naruto ever decide to return to this world, it would be up to him."

Hermes picked Naruto up and disappeared in a flash.

…

Athena was watching in the distance, making sure nothing went wrong. She been watching the fight and was both amazed and worried by Naruto's actions. It was clear Naruto wasn't as wise as the rest of her children and legacies over the years, but he did had potential as a grandson of hers if he had proper teachings.

She wasn't surprise to see Kakashi arriving. Kakashi had been secretly looking after Naruto. If it wasn't for Sasuke being one of the last two Uchihas, and Kakashi being the only Jonin with the Sharingan that wouldn't try to turn both boys into his own personal weapons, Kakashi would have focus on Naruto as well.

"I better head back," Athena said as she saw Hermes left with Naruto before disappearing herself.

…Next day…

Naruto groaned while his eyes began to flutter open. He found himself in a room he didn't recognized. He was in an apartment, no doubt about that, but it wasn't the apartment in the leaf. The bed he was in was too comfy, the drawers didn't look like something that been through war, even before the sound and sand village attack the leaf.

Naruto noticed a letter taped to the headboard of the bed he was in. He took it and found it was addressed to him. He opened it and when he read it, his eyes opened.

 _Dear Naruto,_

 _I'm sorry for not picking you up, but we had to wait for the right moment to pick you up. I can't tell you who I am because of family matters you will learn when you're ready, but I want you to know that I'm your grandfather on your mother's side. I didn't act alone though. I had help with your paternal grandmother—your father's mother._

 _I can tell you that your parents is the Fourth Hokage: Minato Namikaze and his wife and my daughter Kushina Uzumaki. They cared about you deeply and died protecting you. Yes, your father was also the one who sealed the fox demon in you, but he did it because he couldn't ask anyone else to use their children, and he had hopes that you will be able to control the fox's power. They also decided that if anything happened to them before you knew who they were, you would take your mother's maiden name, which is why your last name is Uzumaki._

 _Now listen, your grandmother and I cared about you too, but because of family traditions you'll come to learn of we couldn't raise you. However, when we heard about the Akatsuki, we decided to take you to our world which is in a different dimension from the ones you grown up: the Elemental Nations for reasons you'll come to understand later._

 _As for now, your grandmother has enrolled you in a boarding school in Yancy Academy since here you are still required to go to school. In your drawers she left you some books on this world and I left you some clothes we picked out for you, some of this world's currency, and a map in this city. Lastly I recommend you keep your jutsus a secret in this world since here the jutsus you know don't exist._

 _Naruto, I know this is a lot to take in, and you might have a thousand questions to ask about your heritage, but I promise you, it will be explained over time. Just be patient._

 _Love,_

 _Your Grandfather_

 _P.S. Your grandmother suggest you start reading up on Greek Mythology. You'll learn why in the future._

Naruto read and reread the letter, making sure this was not a trick, but it was obvious. Once he was done, Naruto smiled and cried with joy. He had grandparents who cared—a family.

Naruto headed to his dresser drawer and found books along with the map of a city called New York. When he open them and tried to read, he found words swiggled around the page like they always do. In a small drawer was a pouch full of green paper called dollars. The Second drawer down had a new set of cloths. They were a mixture of either blue or gray shirts, jeans or capris there were even some orange t-shirts.

Naruto left the bedroom and found himself in a complete apartment. The kitchen was neatly organized and new. The living room had a television a comfy couch and some easy chairs. There was also a door that lead to a clean bathroom with a separate shower and bath. Lastly there was a sliding window door that led out to an open air Terrance and pavilion into a city Naruto guess was New York city. Outside there were large buildings and roads full of vehicles.

Naruto smirked as he yelled. "LOOK OUT WORLD BECAUSE NARUTO UZUMAKI HAS ARRIVED."

* * *

 **A/N:** First off, I decided to try my own Naruto and Percy Jackson Crossover and if you haven't guessed, Naruto is the grandson of Hermes and Athena. Why? One thing is because I thought it be a nice change of pace from most crossovers where Naruto is a son of an Olympian who either portrayed as his father in another world or his mother being an Olympian since Kushina was a the Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tail Fox before Naruto.

As for why I pick Athena and Hermes, well I pick Hermes since Hermes' kids can be as persuasive as their father as well as can be pranksters, I figured since Naruto can be persuasive when he tries and he use to love pranking I would go with Hermes. I picked Athena since Minato was seen as a genius with his skills in sealing and creating jutsus as well as his victories during the 3rd Great War in Naruto.

I'll add a poll to see which Cabin Naruto should stay in. Whatever cabin he doesn't live in will be the table he eats at which I would explain when Naruto reach Camp Half-Blood and is claimed.

I will be working on this story and the rest including 'The Tales of the Son of Poseidon'


	2. Our Pre-Algebra Teacher is a Monster

Mrs. Dodds the Fury

A lot has happened since Naruto came to the new world. More than once he was almost hit by car, he had given a waitress a hundred dollar tip, and pulled a kunai when a car alarm went off. But eventually Naruto started to understand.

Naruto also hit a growth spurt since he came to this world as he was no longer a scrawny kid in his age group. He also hanged up his jumpsuit and started wearing the clothes his grandparents gave him.

After a few weeks after arriving Naruto was send to a boarding school in New York for troubled kids. Once there he was diagnosed with Attention Deficient Hyperactive Disorder which explains why he could never stand still, and Dyslexia which causes words to jumble up in his head. Although Naruto was suppose to be placed in the seventh grade, the school councilor decided it was best that Naruto was placed in the sixth grade.

Naruto was roomed with two other boys: Percy Jackson and Grover Underwood—both in the sixth grade.

Percy was a twelve year old boy with black hair and sea green eyes. Like Naruto, Percy had ADHD and Dyslexia, and also came from the same part of New York City as Naruto: Manhattan. Percy been placed in the school because he been kicked out of every private school his mother manage to put him in since he started pre-school.

Grover on other hand was a disable kid with some kid of muscular disease in his legs that cause his legs to hurt every time he walk, but he sure can run on enchilada day in the cafeteria. Not only that but he was the only sixth grader with ache and a start of a wispy beard. According Grover he's repeating the sixth grade.

They quickly became friends on their first week, although Percy and I had a few moments where we annoy each other. However they are protective over Grover since he was constantly bullied by their fellow classmates due to his disability. However, whenever someone tried to bully Grover they found themselves the next day pranked in some way. One day a group of boys tripped Grover over and the next morning they were found hanging by their underwear on the school's flag poll while the national anthem was playing.

Most of the school couldn't figure who done it, but Grover and Percy had a sneaky suspicion Naruto was somehow behind it because whenever he hear about the pranks, he always had that glint in his gray-blue eyes and a mischievous grin.

Pranks isn't the only thing Naruto did at night, While his friends were asleep, Naruto would create a shadow clone to take his place in the room and sneak out at night to practice his jutsus, including some wind style jutsus he got for his birthday while in Yancy after he found out he can use after some elemental training suggested in his scrolls, as well as worked on his sealing jutsus he got for his birthday.

Now Naruto was wearing a gray shirt with a blue demine jacket and gray-blue cargo pants in a school trip with Percy and Grover and twenty-six mental-case kids and two teachers heading to the Metropolitan Museum of Art to look at ancient Greek and Roman stuff.

Most of the time Yancy field trips like this bored Naruto and Percy, but their Latin teacher, Mr. Brunner, was leading the trip so they had hopes.

Mr. Brunner was this middle-aged guy in a motorized wheelchair. He had thinning hair and a scruffy beard and frayed tweed jacket, which always smelled like coffee. You wouldn't think he'd be cool, but he told stories and jokes and let his students play games in class. He also had a collection of Roman armor and weapons, so he was the only teacher whose class didn't put Naruto and Percy to sleep.

However, at the same time, Naruto couldn't help but let his guard up around the guy. He just appeared a week in the first semester and took an immediate interest in him and Percy. Well, he couldn't say Mr. Brunner took an immediate interest in him exactly. At first, Mr. Brunner studied him as if trying to figure out if Naruto was a threat or not before finally taking an interest in him.

Right now, however, Naruto was more concern of making sure Percy doesn't cause any trouble.

Percy had a bad reputation with field trips. In his fifth-grade school he took a trip to the Saratoga battlefield, and he had this accident with a Revolutionary War cannon. He wasn't aiming for the school, but he got expelled anyways. Before that, in Percy's fourth grade school, they took a behind-the-scenes tour of the Marine World shark pool. During it, Percy accidentally hit the wrong lever on the catwalk, and his class took an unplanned swim.

Almost every field trips he been on been on led to him being expelled or suspended. Because of it their headmaster threatened Percy by in-school suspension if anything bad, embarrassing, or even mildly entertaining happened on this trip.

The class bully, Nancy Bobofit, a freckled red-haired kleptomaniac didn't help with Percy's situation. She was throwing wads of sandwich that stuck in his curly brown hair.

Even Naruto struggled not to get up and beat her up but he couldn't do anything in a crowd but send her warning glances. Nancy was one of the few students that still pick on Grover around Naruto despite the fact the first day she tried she found herself next morning pinned to the school wall by pencils a few floors above the ground. The school had to get in a cherry picker to get her down.

"I'm going to kill her," Percy mumbled.

Grover tried to calm him down. "It's okay. I like peanut butter."

He dodge another piece of Nancy's lunch.

"That's it." Percy started to get up, but Grover pulled him back to his seat.

"You're already on probation," he reminded Percy. "You know who'll get blamed if anything happens."

"Fine," Percy said.

"Don't worry, Percy. I'm sure our mysterious prankster friend has something planned for her," Naruto responded.

Percy smirked hearing it causing Grover to sigh.

…

Mr. Brunner led the museum tour.

He rode up front in his wheelchair, guiding the us through the big echoey galleries, past marble statues and glass cases full of really old black-and-orange pottery. Naruto often teased Percy for the gaping look on his face when he saw some of the exhibits.

One of their stops was a model of the first chariot—thought to be built by the teamwork of Poseidon and Athena. Athena built the chariot while Poseidon supplied the horses.

"I bet it was fun racing one of those," Naruto said.

"Yeah, especially around time square," Percy agreed.

Grover's lip quivered when he heard that. _"Gods, these two will be the death of me,"_ He thought.

Their next stop was the mosaic of the twelve labors of Hercules—or Heracles, as the Greeks originally called him. Naruto took interest of the one of Hercules subduing Cerberus—a three headed large dog that served Hades.

 _I bet Cerberus makes a sweet summoning_ , Naruto thought.

Another area of the museum was where they had statues and paintings on what the Greeks thought the Olympians looked like. The two that got Naruto's attention the most was a statue of a woman in battle armor and a man with winged sandles and helmet carry a staff with two snakes wrapped around it before stopping at the wings at the top of the staff.

"Athena and Hermes," Naruto said out loud.

"You have a comment, Mr. Uzumaki?" Mr. Brunner asked.

"Uh… no sir. I mean, I was just saying that these two"—Naruto pointed at the two statues he was staring at—"was Athena goddess of wisdom and strategy and Hermes god of travelers Merchants Roads and thieves."

Mr. Brunner seemed amused that Naruto knew about it. "That's right. Tell me Naruto, since you know so much about Greek Mythology, what is the name of a child of a god?"

"A demigod, sir," Naruto replied.

"Can you list any of their children?" Mr. Brunner asked.

"Well, Hermes had hundreds of kids, demigod and immortal like most gods he couldn't stay away from any mortal that caught his attention. Some say Pan: Lord of the Wild was his son," Naruto said, "As for Athena—well, the greeks mostly saw Athena as a virgin goddess. There was only one known son, but because how he came to be she remained a virgin, right?"

"That's right," Mr. Brunner said, "Come on, there's more."

Mr. Brunner gathered the class around a thirteen-foot-tall stone column with a big sphinx on the top, and started telling them how it was a grave marker, a _stele_ , for a girl about their age. He told us about the carvings on the sides. Naruto and Percy was trying to listen, Naruto because he was interested in Greek Mythology even if he doesn't act like it and Percy because he found it kind of interesting, but everybody around them was talking, and every time Percy told them to shut up the other chaperone, Mrs. Dodds, would give him the evil eye.

Mrs. Dodds was this little math teacher from Georgia who always wore a black leather jacket, even though she was fifty years old. She looked mean enough to ride a Harley right into your locker. She had come to Yancy halfway through the year, when their last math teacher had a nervous breakdown.

From her first day, Mrs. Dodds loved Nancy Bobofit and figured Percy was devil spawn. As for Naruto, Mrs. Dodds seemed to just not like him, but she seemed to also treat him like an annoying student like something about him she didn't like, but doesn't see as the biggest problem but she always try to separate the two when it came to detention, and despite never getting caught for pranks, Naruto still received punishment for other rules he broke. Although the way she treated Percy it was no surprise he once commented that Mrs. Dodds wasn't human.

Mr. Brunner kept talking about Greek funeral art.

Finally, Nancy Bobofit snickered something about the naked guy on the stele, and Percy turned around and said, "Will you _shut up_?"

It obviously came out louder than he meant it to.

The whole group laughed. Mr. Brunner stopped his story

"Mr. Jackson," he said, "did you have a comment?"

Percy turned red with embarrassment. He said, "No, sir."

Mr. Brunner pointed to one of the pictures on the stele. "Perhaps you'll tell us what this picture represents."

Percy looked at the carving and seemed to have relax. "That's Kronos eating his kids, right?"

"Yes," Mr. Brunner said, obvious not satisfied. "And he did this because…"

"Well…" Percy racked his brain to remember. "Kronos was the king god, and—"

"God?" Mr. Brunner asked.

"Titan," Percy corrected himself. "And… he didn't trust his kids, who were the gods. So, um, Kronos ate them, right? But his wife hid baby Zeus, and gave Kronos a rock to eat instead. And later, when Zeus grew up, he tricked his dad, Kronos, into barfing up his brothers and sisters—"

"Eeew!" said one of the girls behind them.

"—and so there was this big fight between the gods and the Titans," Percy continued, "and the gods won."

Some snickers from the group.

Behind Percy, Nancy mumbled to a friend, "Like we're going to use this in real life. Like it's going to say on our job applications, 'Please tell us who were some of the Olympian's kids?' or 'Please explain why Kronos ate his kids.'"

"And why, Mr. Jackson," Brunner said, "to paraphrase Miss Bobofit's excellent question, does this matter in real life?"

"Busted," Naruto snickered.

"Shut up," Nancy hissed, her face even brighter red than her head. She could never get away with anything around Mr. Brunner.

Percy thought about his question, and shrugged. "I don't know."

"I see—what about you Mr. Uzumaki?"

Naruto folded his arm closed his eyes and folded his hands which he does when he tries to think or understand things, except normally he does it while sitting in a lotus position but after coming to this world he had to learn how to do it while standing.

He remembered Iruka trying to make him Kiba Shikamaru and Choji focus their charka to their foreheads. At the time he didn't think was some stupid punishment for ditching class, until Pervy Sage a.k.a. Jiriaya—tried to help him with the second task of learning the Rasengan when he learned that the lesson Iruka tried to teach them had a point. He didn't know if it sticks with this world's learning but it didn't hurt trying.

"I guess because—what we learned from school can apply to the real world even if we don't expect it too," Naruto replied.

Mr. Brunner smiled. "That's correct, Mr. Uzumaki. To rephrase that, what you learn in school can apply to the real world, even if people don't think it would. Another full credit it to you Mr. Uzumaki, and half credit to you, Mr. Jackson. On the happier note, it's lunch time. Mrs. Dodds, would you lead us back outside?"

…

The class drifted off, the girls holding their stomachs, the guys pushing each other around acting like doofuses.

Grover Percy and Naruto were about to follow when Mr. Brunner said, "Mr. Jackson."

"Go ahead," Percy told Naruto and Grover as he turned to Mr. Brunner.

Naruto and Grover headed out and found a seat at the fountain where _none_ of their classmates were hanging around.

"How did you know how to answer Mr. Brunner's question?" Grover asked.

Naruto took out his backpack and reached in to make it lok like he was getting his ramen, but in reality unsealing them in the storage seals he kept in it.

"I guess you can say I already learned the hard way about taking lessons seriously," Naruto said.

"But you never take your schooling serious," Grover said.

"That's because other than Mr. Brunner, our teachers makes learning boring," Naruto said. "Seriously would it hurt for a history teacher to—I don't know—reenact it? Or for a math teacher turn learning algebra into a friendly competition? Something like that?"

Grover stared at Naruto. "No—I guess not."

Percy came sat down next to Grover as Naruto opened his Ramen which was ready to eat. They never could figure out how Naruto could have a prepared cup of Ramen or where Naruto puts it all when he goes through so many cups in one meal.

"Looks like we're in for another freak storm," Percy said.

Overhead, a storm was brewing, with clouds blacker than usual over the city. It been one of many weird weathers they been having across the state: massive snow storms, flooding, wildfires from lightning strikes.

And yet nobody else seemed to notice. Some of the guys were pelting pigeons with Lunchables crackers. Nancy Bobofit was trying to pickpocket something from a lady's purse, and, of course, Mrs. Dodds wasn't seeing a thing.

"Did you get detention?" Grover asked Percy since he seemed upset about something.

"Nah," Percy replied. "Not from Brunner. I just wish he'd lay off me sometimes. I mean—I'm not a genius."

"No, but you are obviously his favorite student," Naruto said, "And teachers always expect their favorites to try better than before even if they have the lowest grades in the class."

"Gee, thanks," Percy muttered.

"Can I have your apple?" Grover asked Percy.

Percy gave it to him as he watched the stream of cabs going down Fifth Avenue.

It didn't take a genius for Naruto to figure out what was on Percy's mind. Percy was thinking of his mother: Sally Jackson.

Naruto got the honor of meeting Mrs. Jackson when Percy invited him over to his place over Christmas after finding out Naruto lived on his own. Naruto also got the pleasure of earning money and creaming Percy's awful stepfather Gabe Ugliano in poker and then using that money to help Mrs. Jackson out with bills and food as he promised in returning of staying.

From the day they met, Sally treated Naruto like a second son. Especially since Naruto was the first friend Percy invited over from school. Grover was invited as well, but he couldn't come.

Mr. Brunner parked his wheelchair at the base of the handicapped ramp. He ate celery while he read a paperback novel. A red umbrella stuck up from the back of his chair, making it look like a motorized café table.

Percy was about to unwrap his sandwich when Nancy Bobofit appeared in front of them with her ugly friends—probably gotten tired of stealing from tourist—and dumped her half-eaten lunch in Grover's lap.

"Oops." She grinned at Percy and Naruto with her crooked teeth. Her freckles were orange, as if somebody had spray-painted her face with liquid Cheetos.

 _That's it,_ Naruto thought out of anger as he was about to get up.

But before he could punch her, there was a roaring sound as water suddenly seem to have came out of the fountain, went around Naruto, grab Nancy, and pulled into the fountain.

It wasn't that deep but Nancy was still soaked by the fountain as she screamed. "Percy pushed me!"

Mrs. Dodds materialized next to Naruto Percy and Grover.

Naruto heard some of the kids whispering: "Did you see—"

"—the water—"

"—like it grabbed her—"

 _I guess I wasn't imagining it,_ Naruto thought.

As soon as Mrs. Dodds was sure Nancy was okay, promising to get her a new shirt at the museum gift shop, etc., etc, Mrs. Dodds turned to Percy with a triumphant look in her eyes, as if he'd done something she been waiting for all semester. "Now, honey—"

"I know," Percy grumbled. "A month erasing workbooks."

Mrs. Dodds glared at him.

"Percy, dude, never guess your punishment before you're given it," Naruto said.

"Come with me!" Mrs. Dodds told Percy.

"Wait!" Grover yelped. "It was me. _I_ push her."

Percy and Naruto both stared at him stunned of the fact that Grover was covering for Percy. Mrs. Dodds scared Grover to death.

She glared at him so hard his whiskery chin trembled.

"I don't think so, Mr. Underwood," she said.

"But—"

"You— _will_ —stay—here."

Grover looked at Naruto to back him up.

"It's okay, man," Percy told Grover. "Thanks for trying."

"Honey," Mrs. Dodds barked at Percy. _"Now."_

Nancy Bobofit smirked it quickly end when Naurto gave her a look that said, _You better sleep with one eye open tonight._

When Naruto turned to check on his friend, he found Percy struggling to keep up with Mrs. Dodds who had somehow beat him to the Museum.

"You know what, I'm going after him," Naruto said.

"Naruto, don't!" Grover said.

"Relax, Grover. I'm just making sure Percy doesn't do anything he'll regret," Naruto said as he quickly headed into the museum.

…

Naruto searched around the museum for his friend and least favorite teacher.

"Geez, if they didn't go to the gift shop where did they go?" Naruto asked himself.

Just then there was a loud scream of fear that caught Naruto's attention.

"That sounds like Percy," Naruto said as he began to sprint towards the room where the scream originated.

Naruto ran into the hall with the statues of the Olympians were, where Percy came out of nowhere running toward him.

"Naruto, run!" Percy said.

"Percy, what the heck are you—"

"Where is it?" a deep scratchy voice called out just then a leathery bat-like/human hybrid with eyes as back as coal and greyish body with sharp teeth and talon like claws showed up.

"What is that?" Naruto thought.

The monster seemed not to have noticed Naruto, or at least ignored him, as it flew at Percy for a kill. Naruto tackled Percy, pushing him out of the way.

"What is that?" Naruto asked.

"I don't know. Mrs. Dodds took me in here and started spouting nonsense before turning into that," Percy responded.

"That thing is Mrs. Dodds?" Naruto asked.

"Come here, honeys!" Mrs. Dodds yelled flying at them.

Percy had a look of fear on his face, and Naruto reached for his weapon pouch that he didn't have on him.

 _The one day I decided not to bring my pouch,_ Naruto thought before turning to his friend. "Percy, I need you to promise me not to tell anyone what I'm about to do."

"What?"

"Do you promise?"

"Yeah, fine I promise!" Percy agreed.

Mrs. Dodds came in for another slash, but Naruto quickly made a few hand signs.

"Wind Style: Wind Scythe Jutsu!" Naruto yelled before taking a deep breath blew a large twister of razor sharp wind.

It hit Mrs. Dodds and slashed through her as she was send flying backwards into the wall.

"H-how did you do that?" Percy asked I total shock.

"I'll tell you later, but right now, we should make sure she's gone for good," Naruto said.

Just as he said that, Mrs. Dodds flew high in the air, angrier than ever before.

Then things got even more strange.

Mr. Brunner wheeled his chair into the doorway of the gallery holding two pens.

"What ho, Percy! What ho, Naruto!" he shouted, and threw each pen in the air.

Mrs. Dodds lunged at the boys.

Percy and Naruto dodge it while catching each pen. When they caught the pens, they weren't pen's anymore. Percy's was a sword they seen Mr. Brunner used on tournament days he challenges there knowledge of Greek Mythology. But Naruto's was a different story.

Naruto's was a long single edge bronze blade with a circular guard and long grip that Naruto was forced to hold with both hands. It was a foot longer than Percy's at least—about four feet long, but it felt right in Naruto's hands. On the end of the handle was a familiar red circle with a black spiral in it.

Mrs. Dodds snarled. "Die, honeys!"

"On my mark Percy, swing," Naruto responded.

Percy reluctantly nodded before Mrs. Dodds flew straight at them.

"Now!" Naurto yelled.

At the same time they swung their swords, hit Mrs. Dodds by the shoulder and pass clean through her body as if she were made out of water. _Hiss!_

Mrs. Dodds was a sand castle in a power fan. She exploded into yellow powder, vaporized on the spot, leaving nothing but the smell of sulfur and a dying screech and chill of evil in the air.

Naruto and Percy stood in the Museum, just the two of them.

Percy was now holding a ball point pen while Naruto was holding one of those pens you click the button on the end to use.

Mr. Brunner wasn't there either.

They decided to leave the Museum.

…

It had started to rain.

Grover was sitting by the fountain, a museum map tented over his head. Nancy Bobofit was still standing there, soaked from her sim in the fountain, grumbling to her ugly friends until she saw Percy and said, "I hope Mrs. Kerr whipped your butt."

Naruto and Percy blinked. "Who?"

"Our _teacher_. Duh!"

They blinked.

"Do you have any idea what she's talking about?" Percy asked.

"No," Naruto responded, "Let's ask Grover about Mrs. Dodds."

They walked over to their friend and asked.

At first Grover paused, and asked without looking at their eye, "Who?"

"Not funny, man," Naruto said. This is serious."

Thunder boomed overhead.

"Come on, Naruto, let's ask Mr. Brunner," Percy said.

Mr. Brunner was sitting under his red umbrella, reading his book, as if he'd never moved. He looked up, a little distracted, when Naruto and Percy approached him. "Ah, that would be my pens. Please bring your own writing utensils in the future, Mr. Jackson and Mr. Uzumaki."

They handed Mr. Brunner his pens, forgetting that they still had it.

"Sir," Percy said, "where's Mrs. Dodds?"

He stared at Percy blankly. "Who?"

"Come on, Mr. Brunner," Naruto said, "Mrs. Dodds. The Pre-Algebra teacher who is also chaperoning this class."

Mr. Brunner frowned and sat forward, looking mildly concern. "Percy, Naruto, there is no Mrs. Dodds on this trip. As far as I know, there has never been a Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy. Are you two feeling all right?"

Only one thought ran through Naruto's head: _What the heck is going on here?_


	3. Three Old Ladies Knit Socks of Death

**Three Old Ladies Knit Socks of Death**

Naruto started wishing he never show Percy his wind style jutsu. When Naruto first told Percy about where he came from and the jutsus he can use, Percy at first didn't believe him, but after a few ninja tricks, Percy started seeing Naruto as if he was a super hero in disguise. At first it was interesting, but then it got annoying to the fact, Naruto slapped Percy in the back of the head.

If one thing good came out of it, Naruto proving he was a ninja from another world confirmed that what their battle with Mrs. Dodds really happened. Which is good, because the rest of the students were convinced that Mrs. Kerr—a perky blond woman whom they never seen before until she got on their bus at the end of the field trip—been their pre-algebra teacher since Christmas.

Every so often Naruto and Percy would spring a Mrs. Dodds reference on somebody, just to see if they could trip them up, but they would just stare at Naruto and Percy like they were psycho.

Grover couldn't fool them, though. When Percy mention the name Dodds to him, he would hesitate, then claim she didn't exist, which Naruto recognize as lying.

One thing was certain: Something was going on. Something _had_ happened at the museum.

The freak weather continued, which didn't help Percy's mood—which had been worsening since the incident. One night, a thunderstorm blew out the windows in their dorm. A few days later, the biggest tornado ever spotted in the Hudson Valley touched down only fifty miles from Yancy Academy. One of the current events they studied in social studies class was the unusual number of small planes that had gone down in sudden squalls in the Atlantic that year.

Percy started feeling cranky and irritable most of the time. His grades slipped from Ds to Fs. Naruto manage to keep a C average thanks to his shadow clones—whenever Grover wasn't around.

Percy and Naruto got into more fights with Nancy Bobofit and her friends and was sent out into the hallway in almost every class.

Finally, when their English teacher, Mr. Nicoll, asked Percy for a millionth time why he was too lazy to study for a spelling test, he snapped. Percy called him an old sot. Naruto also commented back that the teacher wasn't so stupid he would help Percy study because of his dyslexia instead of accusing him for being lazy.

The headmaster made it official after that. Naruto and Percy wasn't invited back to Yancy Academy next year.

They didn't mind. Most of the teachers there were pathetic for not knowing how to take care of a kid with ADHD and Dyslexia.

There were a few things they would miss; Grover, who'd been a good friend, even if he was a little strange. Percy worried how he'd survived the next year without the Dynamic Duo—which Percy and Naruto gained the nickname of since they both been getting into trouble together lately.

They would also miss Mr. Brunner's Latin Class. It was the only class where the teacher made learning interesting.

As exam week got closer, Latin was the only test Percy studied for.

The evening before their final, Grover left for a walk so Naruto could summon shadow clones for studying. One of the coolest things Naruto learned shadow clones is dispersed he gained it's memory—which he learned one night when he trained overtime by accident. If it wasn't for it, Naruto might have been caught earlier.

Finally after so many hours of trying to study, Percy threw his _Cambridge Guide to Greek Mythology_ across the dorm room.

"Geez Percy, what did the book do to you?" Naruto responded.

"I give up! There's no way I'm going to be ready!" Percy responded, "How am I supposed to know the difference between Polydictes and Polydeuces, or Chiron and Charon."

"Well for one thing, Chiron with an _'I'_ is a centaur, and Charon with an _'A'_ is a servant of Hades," Naruto responded as if he was a teacher lecturing to a little kid.

Percy glared at Naruto as the blonde snickered which didn't ease Percy's glare.

"Oh come on, Percy. Lighten up! You know me for a school year, you should be use to this by now," Naruto laughed.

"Says the guy who has copies of himself doing his studying," Percy grumbled.

"I'm studying!" Naruto waved his book on Mythology. "They're studying up on my Latin and jutsus!"

"Whatever!" Percy mumbled as he picked up his mythology book.

"Well, if you really want to pass the class, why don't you ask Mr. Brunner for help?" Naruto asked.

Percy paused. "You think he'll be willing to help me?"

"Oh yeah. You're practically his favorite student," Naruto responded, "I'll come with you. I need to get some fresh air anyways."

Percy didn't seem to like the idea to have Naruto there listening to him asking Mr. Brunner for help, but agreed anyways.

Before they shut the doors Naruto turned to his clones.

"If you hear anyone coming in, break the jutsu!" Naruto ordered before shutting the door.

They walked downstairs to the faculty offices. Most of them were dark and empty, but Mr. Brunner's door was ajar, light from his window stretching across the hallway floor.

They were three steps from the door handle when they heard voices inside the office. Mr. Brunner asked a question. A voice inside was definitely Grover's said "… worried about Naruto and Percy, sir."

Percy frozed while Naruto quirked his eyebrow. Not everyday they hear their friend talk about them behind their backs. So they inched closer.

"…alone this summer," Grover said. "I mean, a Kindly One in _school_! Now that we know for sure, and _they_ know too—"

"We would only make matters worse by rushing Percy," Mr. Brunner said, "We need the boy to mature more."

"What about Naruto?" Grover asked.

"Naruto—is a mysterious one. He's arrogant and cocky, but at the same time—I can't place my finger on it. He just doesn't seem like the others. I think it's best for now that we wait and see with him."

"But they may not have time. Especially Percy. The summer solstice deadline—"

"Will have to be resolved without them, Grover. Let Percy enjoy his ignorance while he still can, and keep Naruto in the dark as long as possible," Chiron said.

"Sir, they _saw_ her…"

"Their imagination," Mr. Brunner insisted. "The Mist over the students and staff will be enough to convinced them that."

"Sir, I… I can't fail in my duties again." Grover's voice was choked with emotion. "You know what that would mean."

"You haven't failed, Grover," Mr. Brunner said kindly. "I should have seen her for what she was. Now let's just worry about keeping Percy and Naruto alive until next fall—"

Percy's mythology dropped out of his hand and hit the floor with a thud.

Mr. Brunner went silent.

Naruto muttered some incoherent words, picked up Percy's text book, and literally dragged his friend down the hall into the nearest door and slipped inside.

A few seconds later they heard a slow _clop-clop-clop_ , like muffled wood blocks, then a sound like an animal snuffling right outside the door. A large dark shape paused in front of the glass, then moved on.

Somewhere in the hallway, Mr. Brunner spoke. "Nothing," he murmured. "My nerves haven't been right since the winter solstice."

"Mine neither," Grover said. "But I could have sworn…"

"Go back to the dorm," Mr. Brunner told him. "You've got a long day of exams tomorrow."

"Don't remind me."

The lights went out in Mr. Brunner's office.

Naruto and Percy stayed in the dark office until Naruto received memories from his clones, including one of someone coming in at the end.

They slipped out into the hallway and made their way back up to the dorm.

Grover was lying on his bed, studying his Latin exam notes like he'd been there all night.

"Hey," he said, bleary-eyed. "You going to be ready for this test?"

"As ready as I can be," Naruto responded, "Don't know about Percy though, he's still getting names mixed up."

Instead of glaring at Naruto, Percy grunted.

"You look awful." He frowned. "Is everything okay?"

"Just… tired."

Naruto turned to his friend. Percy turned so they couldn't read his expression as he got ready for bed.

However, Naruto knew what was on Percy's mind. It been bugging him too. Mr. Brunner and Grover were talking about them behind their back. They thought the two of them were in some kind of danger.

…

The next afternoon, Naruto and Percy was leaving the three-hour Latin exam when Mr. Brunner called them back inside.

For a moment, they were worried he'd found about them eavesdropping the night before, but that didn't seem to be the problem.

"Percy and Naruto," he said. "Don't be discouraged above leaving Yancy. It's… it's for the best."

His tone was kind but the words embarrassed both boys. Even though he was speaking quietly, the other kids finishing the test could hear. Nancy Bobofit smirked at them and made sarcastic little kissing motions with her lips. Naruto took out a paper football he made and flicked it to Nancy's deck. When it hit it dug in deep. That ended the sarcastic kissing motions.

Percy mumbled, "Okay, sir."

"I mean…" Mr. Brunner wheeled his chair back and forth, like he wasn't sure what to say. "This isn't the right place for you. It was only a matter of time."

 _Uh-oh, Percy's not going to take that well_ , Naruto thought.

"Right," Percy said, trembling.

"No, no," Mr. Brunner said. "Oh, confound it all. What I'm trying to say… you're not normal, Percy. That's nothing to be—"

"Thanks," Percy blurted. "Thanks a lot sir, for reminding me."

"Percy—"

But he was already gone.

"Well—that could have gone better," Naruto responded.

"Naruto—" Mr. Brunner said.

"Don't worry, I'm use to stuff like this," Naruto responded. "I know I'm not normal, and I'm darn proud of it."

Mr. Brunner tried to hide a smiled. "So what's your plan for the summer?"

"Well, I'll be moving back to my lovely apartment, and maybe visit the Jacksons some more," Naruto responded. "As for what school I'll go to after that—I guess it depends on what my caretakers have planned next."

Mr. Brunner nodded. "Well, it's an honor to get to meet you, Naruto. I hope we meet in the future."

"Same here, Mr. Brunner," Naruto responded, "Not every day I meet a teacher who makes learning fun!"

Naruto headed off to meet up with Percy.

…

On the last day of the term both boys shoved their clothes into their suitcases, or in Naruto's case sealed them into storage seals and then placed them in his suitcases. Sally had contacted them and told Naruto was invited to their place for a few days.

The other guys were joking around, talking about their vacation plans. One of them was going on a hiking trip to Switzerland. Another was cruising the Caribbean for a month. They were juvenile delinquents, like Naruto and Percy, but they were _rich_ juvenile delinquents. Their daddies were executives, or ambassadors, or celebrities. Percy was a nobody, from a family of nobodies, and Naruto was an orphaned who only was able to enter this school because of his unknown grandparents.

Then they asked Percy and Naruto what they were doing this summer and they answered that they were going back to the city. Although, Percy didn't mention how he might have to get a summer job and spend his free time worrying about his next new school.

"Oh," one of the guys said. "That's cool."

They went back to their conversation as if Naruto and Percy had never existed.

The only person they dreaded saying good-bye to was Grover, but it turned out they didn't have to. He'd booked a ticket to Manhattan on the same Greyhound as them, so there they were, together again, heading into a city.

During the whole bus ride, Grover kept glancing nervously down the aisle, watching the other passengers as if worrying about bullies.

Finally Naruto, who was in a row behind him and Percy, said, "Looking for the Kindly Ones?"

Grover nearly jumped out of his seat. "Wha—what do you mean?"

Percy sighed and confessed how he and Naruto eavesdropped on Grover's and Mr. Brunner's conversation.

Grover's eye twitched. "How much did you two hear?"

"Oh… not much," Naruto replied.

"What's the summer solstice deadline?" Percy asked.

He winced. "Look, Percy, Naruto… I was just worried for you two, see? I mean, hallucinating about demon math teacher…"

"Grover—" Percy said.

"And I was telling Mr. Brunner that maybe you two were overstressed or something, because there was no such person as Mrs. Dodds, and…"

"Grover, man, you're a really, really bad liar," Naruto said. "You pause before lying, your ears turn pink and dude, you keep changing topics."

Grover's ears turned pink.

From his pocket, he fished out a couple of grubby business cards. "Just take this, okay? In case you two need me this summer."

The card was fancy script, so it took Percy and Naruto to make out something like:

 **Grover Underwood**

Keeper

Half-Blood Hill

Long Island, New York

(800) 009-0009

Percy began to ask, "What's Half—"

"Don't say it aloud!" he yelped. "That's my, um… summer address."

Naruto didn't have to look at Percy to know he was upset by it. They never considered the fact that Grover's family might be as rich as the others at Yancy.

"Okay," Percy said glumly.

"So, like, if we want to come visit your mansion," Percy responded.

He nodded. "Or… or if you need me."

"Why would we need you?" Percy asked rather harshly.

"Geez, Percy, can't you go easy on the guy?" Naruto asked.

Grover blushed right down to his Adam's apple. "Look, you two, the truth is, I—I kind of have to protect you."

Naruto and Percy stared at him.

All year Percy been getting into fights, Naruto pulling pranks, just to keep bullies. And here he was acting like he protected them.

"Grover," Naruto said, "What exactly are you protecting me from?"

There was a huge grinding noise under their feet. Black smoke poured from the dashboard and the whole bus filled with the smell like rotten eggs. The driver cursed and limped the Greyhounds over to the side of the highway.

After a few minutes clanking around in the engine compartment, the driver announced that we'd all have to get off. Grover Percy and Naruto filed outside with everybody else.

They were on a stretch of country road—no place would anyone think they would find a vehicle break down. On their side of the highway was nothing but maple trees and litter from passing cars. On the other side, across four lanes of asphalt shimmering with afternoon heat, was an old-fashioned fruit stand.

The fruit stand had heaping boxes of bloodred cherries and apples, walnuts and apricots, jugs of cider in a claw-foot tub full of ice, all on sale. There were no customers, just three old ladies sitting in rocking chairs in the shade of a maple tree, knitting the biggest pair of socks Percy and Naruto had ever seen.

The sweaters were obviously socks, but they were the size of sweaters. The lady on the right knitted one of them. The lady on the left knitted the other. The lady in the middle held an enormous basket of electric-blue yarn.

All three women looked ancient, with pale faces wrinkled like fruit leather, silver hair tied back in white bandannas, bony arms sticking out of bleach cotton dresses, and they were looking straight at Percy.

Percy and Naruto turned to Grover and saw that the blood had drained from his face. His nose was twitching.

"Grover?" Naruto asked. "Hey, man—"

"Tell me they're not looking at you, Percy. They are, aren't they?" Grover asked.

"Yeah. Weird, huh? You think those socks would fit me?" Percy asked.

"Not unless you were a giant," Naruto joked.

"Not funny, guys. Not funny at all."

The old lady in the middle took out a huge pair of scissors—gold and silver, long-bladed, like shears. I heard Grover catch his breath.

"We're getting on the bus," he told them, "Come on."

"What?" Percy responded. "It's a thousand degrees in there."

"Come on!" He pried open the door and climbed inside, but Naruto and Percy stayed back.

Across the road, the old ladies were still watching Percy. The middle one cut the yarn with a snip that both Percy and Naruto could hear across four lanes of traffic. Her two friends balled up the electric-blue socks.

"I wonder who those were for," Percy said.

"I don't know, but Grover seemed spoke. We better go check on him," Naruto responded.

At the rear of the bus, the driver wrenched a big chunk of smoking metal out of the engine compartment. The bus shuddered, and the engine roared back to life.

The passengers cheered.

"Darn right!" yelled the driver. He slapped the bus with his hat. "Everybody back on board!"

Once Naruto and Percy got on board they went back to their seats.

Naruto noticed that Percy was starting to look feverish, as if he got the flu. Grover wasn't much better. He was shivering and his teeth were chattering.

"Grover?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah?"

"What are you not telling us?"

He dabbed his forehead with his shirt sleeve. "Percy, Naruto, what did you see back at the fruit stand?"

"You mean the old ladies?" Percy asked. "What is it about them, man? They're not like… Mrs. Dodds, are they?"

Grover was hard to read, but Naruto had a feeling it was something worse. He said, "Just tell me what you guys saw."

"The middle one took out her scissors, and she cut the yarn," Percy replied.

Grover closed his eyes and made a gesture with his fingers that Naruto didn't recognized. It looked like he was making a cross, but at the same time it wasn't.

He said, "You saw her snip the cord."

"Grover, what's going on?" Naruto asked.

"This is not happening," Grover mumbled. He started chewing at his thumb. "I don't want this to be like last time?"

"What last time?" Both Percy and Naruto asked.

"Always sixth grade. They never get past sixth."

"Grover," Percy said with a bit of fear in his voice, "What are you talking about?"

"Let me walk you guys home from the bus station," Grover begged. "Promis me."

Percy ended up agreeing, but Naruto kept his mouth shut. Grover was afraid of something, and unless he tells them, he doubt Percy will keep his promise.

"Grover," Naruto said, "That snipping of the yarn. Does that mean something is going to happen?"

Grover didn't answer. Instead he looked at Percy like he was a dead man.


	4. Grover Gives Us A Surprise

**Grover Gives Us A Surprise**

Well, Naruto made the right choice not making a promise, but now he has to live with the constant reminder of the first real lesson Kakashi gave him about teamwork: _Those who abandon their friends are worse than trash_.

See, after Grover freaking them out for so long, Percy decided to ditch him, and gave Naruto a choice—he can come with him or stay with Grover. Well, Naruto wasn't planning to leave Percy out on his own, especially since Grover seemed to be freaking out for a reason, but Naruto was still curious about what Grover was freaking on about.

So when Grover made a bee line to the bathroom at when they got off the bus, Naruto created a shadow clone to spy on Grover and told it to disappear if it find out anything out of the ordinary it thinks he should know.

They got their suitcases, slipped outside and caught the first taxi uptown.

"East One-hundred-and-fourth and first," Percy told the driver.

…

Before coming to Yancy, Naruto didn't have a parental figure since Iruka-sensei. So when Sally took Naruto in like her own child, Naruto couldn't help feel like one of the Jackson Family.

Sally was the best person in the world, she just had the worse luck, from what Percy told him at least.

Percy's grandparents died in a plane crash when Sally was only five years old, and she was raised by an uncle who didn't really cared for her. She wanted to be a novelist, so she spent high high school working to save enough money for college with a good creative-writing program. Then her uncle got cancer, and she had to quit school her senior year to take care of him. After he died, she was left with no money, no family, and no diploma.

The only good break she ever got was meeting Percy's dad.

Of course, Percy told Naruto he had no memories of him, other than a warm glow and barest trace of his smile. Sally doesn't like to talk about him because it makes her sad.

They weren't married, apparently. Percy's dad was rich and important, and their relationship was a secret. Then one day, he set sail across the Atlantic on some important journey and never came back.

Since then she worked odd jobs, took night classes to get her high school diploma, and raised Percy on her own.

Finally she married Gabe Ugliano, who Naruto never could understand why. He was the world-class jerk. And his stench wasn't much better. He reeked like moldy garlic pizza wrapped in gym shorts. Sometimes Naruto just want to beat up Gabe to treat his wife and stepson better, and Naruto knew he could and now Percy knows too.

…

They walked into the little apartment to find Gabe in the living room, playing poker with his buddies. The television blared ESPN. Chips and beer cans were strewn all over the carpet. Gabe put on weight since Christmas. He looked like a tuskless walrus in thrift-store clothes. He had about three hair on his head, all combed over his scalp like it made him handsome.

He managed the Electronics Mega-Mart in Queens, but Percy told Naruto he stayed home most of the time, and that it was a miracle that he haven't been fired. Gabe just kept collecting paychecks, spending the money on nauseous cigars, and beers. Naruto learned on the first day that whenever Percy is home Gabe expects him to provide his gambling funds or else get his lights punched out.

Gabe hardly looked up when he said, "So, you're home, and you brought annoying blonde punk again."

"Nice to see you too, Gabe," Naruto said sarcastically.

"Where's my mom?" Percy asked.

"Working," he said. "You got any cash?"

"He just got home!" Naruto scowled.

"I wasn't asking you, punk," Gabe scowled back, "And I would show a bit more respect if I were you, or I'll teach you a lesson you'll never forget."

"I love to see a fat pig like yourself tried," Naruto responded.

"What did you call me?" Gabe shot up and send a punch but Naruto caught it with one hand and caught Gabe in the neck with his hand.

Everyone went silent leaving only the sound of the blaring TV as Naruto forcefully lowered Gabe's fist. No one but Gabe noticed that Naruto's eyes flickered from Gray-blue to red with slit pupils like a fox and back again to their normal gray-blue. Naruto didn't say anything but Gabe got the message _if you know what's good for you, don't try_ that _again_.

Naruto released Gabe and Gabe went back to his game quietly. Not even his buddies said anything as Percy and Naruto went to the back room which was really Gabe's study that Gabe shoved Percy's stuff in the closet while he was home.

Percy and Naruto dropped their suitcases.

"Nice one out there," Percy responded.

"Thanks," Naruto responded.

"Percy?" they heard a female voice called out.

Sally Jackson opened the door and came in, and when she did the tension seemed to ease. Her eyes sparkled and change color in the light. Her smile was warm. She's got a few gray streaks mixed in with her long brown hair.

"Oh, Percy," she hugged her son tight. "I can't believe it. You've grown since Christmas.

She was wearing her red-white-and-blue Sweet on America uniform, which smelled like a combination of chocolate, licorice, and everything else the candy shop she works at in Grand Central sold.

"Naruto, it's nice to see you again too," Sally responded giving the blonde a welcoming hug. "Did you get those orange candy I send you?"

"Yeah, thanks!" Naruto responded.

They sat on the edge of Percy's bed. Percy and Naruto attacked the blueberry and orange sour strings from the free samples Sally brought home. Sally ran her hand through Percy's hair and demanded to know everything he hadn't put in his letters. She didn't mention anything about Percy getting expelled. She didn't care about stuff like that, just that Percy was safe and so was Naruto.

From the other room, Gabe yelled, "Hey, Sally—how about some bean dip, huh?"

Naruto clenched his fist as Percy tried to sound upbeat about their last days at Yancy and told her the fights weren't as bad as the Headmaster said.

Then he got to the trip to the museum…

"What?" Sally asked. "Did something scared you?"

"No, mom," Percy lied.

Naruto mentally shook his head. No matter how crazy Mrs. Dodds and the three old ladies with the yarn they met sound, Naruto found it pointless to lie about it.

Sally pursed her lips. It was obvious she knew Percy was holding back, but she didn't push him.

"I have a surprise for you," she said. "We're going to the beach."

Percy's eyes widened. "Montauk?"

"Three nights—same cabin."

"When?"

She smiled. "As soon as I get changed. And Naruto, you're invited to come as well."

This time Naruto's eyes widened. Percy told him about the Jackson family summer get-away.

"Are you sure?"

"Of course," Sally responded, "You're more than welcome."

Naruto grinned his biggest grin. "Thanks."

Gabe appeared in the doorway but froze seeing Naruto. Apparently Naruto had bruised Gabe's ego that the moment he saw the blonde, Gabe seemed to quickly change his mind of what he was going to say.

"When you're done talking, make the bean dip," Gabe grumbled.

"We're just finishing up, honey," she told Gabe. "We were just talking about the trip."

Gabe's eyes got small. "The trip? You mean you were serious about that?"

"I knew it," Percy muttered. "He won't let us go."

"Of course he will," Sally said evenly. "Your stepfather is just worried about money. That's all. Besides," she added, "Gabriel won't have to settle for bean dip. I'll make him enough seven-layer bean dip. I'll make him enough seven-layer dip for the whole weekend. Guacamole. Sour cream. The works."

Gabe softened a bit. "So this money for your trip… it comes out of your clothes budget, right?"

"Yes, honey," Sally said.

"And you won't take my car anywhere but there and back."

"We'll be very careful."

Gabe scratched his double chin and looked at Naruto like he was a threat, "Is that blondie going too?"

"Yes, honey, he will be coming with us," Sally said.

"Fine, if you hurry with that seven-layer dip, you can go," Gabe said leaving.

If Naruto didn't know better, he would think that Gabe was just glad to be rid of him.

Sally turned to Percy. "Once we get to Montauk, we'll talk more about… whatever you've forgotten to tell me, okay."

For a moment Naruto saw anxiety in Sally's eyes—the same look Grover had. But then she smiled and ruffled Percy's and Naruto's hair and went to make Gabe his seven-layer dip.

…

An hour later Naruto Percy and Sally were ready to leave. Naruto volunteered to carry Sally's bags to the car since Gabe refused to help.

"You better not scratch my car Blondie!" Gabe yelled. "Not one scratch."

"He normally saves that for me," Percy responded.

"Maybe he now sees me as a bigger threat," Naruto responded.

They climbed into the Camaro and they drove off.

…

After a one stop trip for Naruto to pick up a few things from his apartment, they headed off.

Along the way, Naruto heard stories about the Jackson family visits there. Percy been going to Montauk since he was a baby, but Sally been going there even longer. Percy even told Naruto once that he thinks that's where his mom met his dad.

Naruto's main concern was spiders. When he was little he used to be terrified of spiders up until his quest to bring Sasuke back, when he had to fight a sound ninja that had spider-base jutsus when he quickly decided that his friends were more important than an old childhood fear. But that doesn't mean Naruto won't smash a spider ten times to make sure they're dead.

They finally arrived at the rental cabin that was on the south shore, way out at the tip of Long Island. It was a little pastel box with faded curtains, half sunken into the dunes.

Naruto noticed that when they got closer to Montauk, Sally seemed to grow younger, years of worry and work disappearing from her face and her eyes changed to the color of the sea.

It was sunset when they got there and they opened the cabin windows and went through a cleaning routine. Once they were done, Sally and Percy took a walk on the beach, feeding blue corn chips to the seagulls, and munch on blue jelly beans, blue saltwater taffy, and all the other blue free samples Sally had brought from her work.

Naruto stayed back and enjoyed his orange candy, which made him smirk. Last winter, Naruto requested Orange food, and Gabe made an argument that there's no such thing—Naruto swear Gabe is color blind or something—so to add to an injury to Gabe's already bruise ego about a similar argument about blue food, Sally started adding orange food dye and Naruto now gets to enjoy orange food and rub it into Gabe.

After Sally and Percy returned, they play a little games to pass the time before starting a camp fire to roast hot dogs and Marsh mallows. Sally told the Naruto and Percy about when she was a kid, back before her parents died in the plane crash. She also told them about the books she wanted to write someday, when she had enough money to quit the candy shop.

During their talk, Percy got the nerve to ask what was on his mind—his father. Sally's eyes went all misty.

"He was kind, Percy," she said. "Tall, handsome, and powerful. But gentle, too. You have his black hair, you know, and his green eyes."

Sally fished a blue jelly bean out of her candy bag. "I wish he could see you, Percy. He would be so proud."

There was a moment of silence. Naruto felt like he was intruding just listening to this conversation.

"How old was I?" Percy asked. "I mean… when he left?"

She watched the flames. "He was only with me for one summer, Percy. Right here at this beach. This cabin."

"But… he knew me as a baby."

"No, honey. He knew I was expecting a baby, but he never saw you. He had to leave before you were born."

There was another moment of silence, but Naruto could tell his friend was angry.

"What about you Naruto?" Sally asked, "What are your parents like?"

"Too be honest, I don't know. They died the night I was born," Naruto replied.

Sally's and Percy's eyes widened. They knew Naruto was an orphaned but didn't knew Naruto didn't even get to know his parents. Even Percy—who knew Naruto had a trust fund form a grandparent from both sides of his family—didn't know much about it.

"But I do know they cared about me," Naruto responded, "They were powerful people though. Heroes of my home town actually—especially my dad, he was a war hero. I also know I inherit my mother's maiden name 'Uzumaki' because of my dad knew people that would want to use me for their own purposes if they knew I was his son. Too be honest, cause of it, I didn't even know who they were until my grandmother on my dad's side and grandfather on my mom's side decided to bring me here and left me a note telling me about them—only now, I don't even know who my mystery grandparents are."

Everything went into another silence.

Sally was thinking of something else. _Naruto's parents were powerful and they were considered as heroes, could they be like Percy, if so—what does that mean for Naruto?_

Percy decided to break the silence and change topics. "Are you going to send me away again?" Percy asked her. "To another boarding school?"

Sally pulled a marshmallow from the fire.

"I don't know, honey." She responded. "I think… I think we'll have to do something."

"Because you don't want me around?" Percy asked earning a slap on the back of the head from Naruto, which Percy found himself glad Naruto did.

Sally's eyes welled with tears. She took her son's hand, squeezed it tight. "Oh, Percy, no. I—I _have_ to, honey. For your own good. I have to send you away."

"Because I'm not normal," Percy said.

"Percy, take this from me, nobody normal," Naruto responded. "That's what makes us unique."

"Thanks Naruto," Sally responded. "Percy, you don't realize how important you are. I thought Yancy Academy would be far enough away. I thought you'd finally be safe."

"Safe from what?" Percy asked.

Naruto had a feeling that Sally knew something she was keeping it from them.

"I've tried to keep you as close to me as I could," Sally said. "They told me that was a mistake. But there's only one other option—and you might be able to go there too, Naruto. The place your father wanted to send you. And I just… I just can't stand to do it."

"My father wanted me to go to a special school?" Percy asked.

"Not a school," she said softly. "A summer camp."

Now Naruto was even more confuse—at least more than he ever though he could be confuse. What kind of summer camp would make Sally not want to send Percy too, and how could he be able to enter it?

"I'm sorry, Percy," Sally said, looking into her son's eyes. "But I can't talk about t. I—I couldn't send you to that place. It might mean saying good-bye to you for good."

"For good?" Percy asked. "But if it's only a summer camp…"

Sally turned to the fire in silence.

"Percy, I think we better leave it at what she told us," Naruto responded.

Percy nodded.

That night they seemed to have a shared dream.

…

Naruto found himself at some beach during a storm. He wasn't alone however, as next to him was Percy.

 _What's going on?_ Naruto thought.

Naruto look around until he saw a gruesome battle between a white horse and a golden eagle. It looked as if they were trying to kill each other at the edge of the surf. The eagle swooped down and slashed at the horse's muzzle with its huge talons. The horse reared up and kicked the eagle's wings. As they fought the ground rumbled, and a monstrous voice chuckled somewhere beneath the earth, goading the animals to fight harder.

Before he could say anything, Naruto had a sense that were two other set of eyes watching him. Naruto turned to see a giant tortoise and an owl perched next to it, watching him, as waiting to see what he was going to do.

Just then Naruto heard Percy yelled, _No!_ But before Naruto could look his vision changed.

Now he was seeing someone on the beach during a storm they were at. It was Grover—but it wasn't completely Grover. From the waist up, Grover was the same Grover Naruto knew, but from the waist down, he was—well—the hind end of a brown goat if it could stand on its hind legs.

"Finally, I found them," Grover said heading to a familiar cabin, "Gods I hope I found them in time."

That's when Naruto realize it was the cabin he was in and that this must be a memory of a shadow clone.

…

Naruto woke with a start and judging from Percy's expression he did as well.

Outside, there was a storm going on, and a powerful one.

With the next thunderclap, Sally woke. She sat up, eyes wide, and said, "Hurricane."

Naruto didn't know about that, but he did know what his shadow clone's memory meant as he got up and eheaded to the door.

"Naruto what—" Percy responded.

Naruto opened the door revealing Grover—just as he saw in his dream, looking as if he was just about to knock when Naruto opened the door. He shook off the shock though.

"Searching all night," Grover gasped. "What were you two thinking?"

"It was Percy's idea!" Naruto responded.

Sally looked at Percy in terror.

"Percy," she said, shouting to be heard over the rain. "What happened at school? What didn't you and Naruto tell me?"

Percy just froze from seeing Grover.

 _"O Zeu kai alloi theoi!"_ Grover yelled. "It's right behind me! Didn't you guys _tell_ her?"

Now even Naruto was surprised Grover just poke ancient language and he understood it. Meanwhile Percy was still looking at Grover's goat half.

Sally looked at Naruto and gave him a look. "Naruto, is there anything Percy keeping from me?"

With no other choice, Naruto told her about Mrs. Dodds, and the old ladies, and everything weird happened. When he was done, Sally's face was deathly pale in the flash of lightning.

She grabbed her purse, tossed Percy and Naruto their rain jackets, and said, "Get to the car. All of you. _Go_!"

Grover ran for the Camero—but he wasn't running, exactly. He was trotting, shaking his hindquarters and his hooves—which should be where his feet were—kicking up the sand.

 _Well, at least this explains why he can run on enchilada day,_ Naruto thought.


	5. Naruto and Percy Fights The Minotaur

**Naruto and Percy Fights The Minotaur**

Sally drove the Camaro through the storm along dark country roads. Wind slammed against the Camaro. Rain lashed the windshield. Despite the weather, Sally kept her foot on the gas.

Naruto decided to sit up front while Percy sat in the back with Grover. Every once in a while Naruto looked back to check his friends to see Percy looking at Grover—mainly his goat legs.

"So," Percy said, "you and my mom… know each other?"

Grover's eyes flitted to the rearview mirror, though there were no cars behind them. "Not exactly," he said. "I mean, we've never met in person. But she knew I was watching you and Naruto."

"Watching us?"

"Keeping tabs on you two. Making sure both of you were okay."

"Oh sure, that's not creepy at all," Naruto joked.

"But I wasn't faking being your friend," Grover told Percy and Naruto both hastily. "I _am_ your friend."

"Um… what _are_ you, exactly?" Percy asked.

"That doesn't matter now," Grover replied.

"It doesn't matter? From the waist down, one of my best friends is a donkey—"

Grover let out a sharp, throaty _"Blaa-ha-ha!"_

"I think the correct term is goat," Naruto corrected Percy.

"What?" Percy responded.

"I'm goat from the waist down," Grover said.

"You just said it didn't matter."

 _"Blaa-ha-ha!_ There are satyrs who would trample you underhoof for such an insult!"

"Whoa. Wait. Satyrs. You mean like… Mr. Brunner's myths?"

"Were those old ladies at the fruit stand a _myth_ , Percy? Was Mrs. Dodds a myth?"

"So you _admit_ there was a Mrs. Dodds!"

"Of course."

"Then why—"

"The less you and Naruto knew, the fewer monsters you two would attract," Grover said, like it should be perfectly obvious. "We put Mist over humans' eyes. We hoped you two would think the Kindly Ones was a hallucination. But it was no good. Both of you started to realize who you are."

"Who we—wait a minute, what do you mean?"

The weird bellowing noise rose up again somewhere behind them, closer than before. It seemed to be chasing them.

"Percy," Sally said, "there's too much to explain and not enough time. We have to get you and Naruto to safety."

"Safety from what?" Percy asked, "Who's after us?"

"I'm curious about that myself," Naruto responded.

"Oh, nobody much," Grover said, obviously miffed about the donkey comment. "Just the Lord of the Dead and a few of his blood-thirstiest minions."

"Grover!"

"Sorry, Mrs. Jackson. Could you drive faster, please?"

Sally turned to Naruto who seemed rather calm despite what was going on.

"Are you okay, Naruto? You seemed rather calm," Sally responded.

"Yeah. I'm use to this kind of stuff," Naruto responded, "Weirdness always follow me."

Sally nodded before making a hard left. They swerved onto a narrower road, racing past darkened farmhouses and wooded hills and PICK YOUR OWN STRAWBERRIES signs on white picked fences.

"Where are we going?" Percy asked.

"The summer camp I told you about." Sally's voice was tight; she was trying for Percy's sake not to be scared. "The place your father wanted to send you."

"The place you didn't want to me to go."

"Please, dear," Sally begged. "This is hard enough. Try to understand. You and Naruto are in danger."

"I don't know about that, I'm a pretty good fighter," Naruto responded.

"Wait, is this al because some old ladies cut yarn?" Percy asked.

"Those weren't old ladies," Grover said. "Those were the Fates. Do you know what it means—the fact they appeared in front of you? They only do that when you're about to… when someone is about to die."

"Who. You said 'you.'"

"No I didn't. I said 'someone.'"

"You meant 'you.' As in _me_."

"I meant _you_ , like 'someone.' Not you, _you_."

"Boys!" Sally said.

She pulled the wheel hard to the right, and Naruto saw something through the window as she swerved to avoid—a dark fluttering shape now lost behind them in the storm.

"What was that?" Naruto asked.

"We're almost there," Sally said, ignoring Naruto's question. "Another mile. Please. Please. Please."

Outside, nothing but rain and darkness—the kind of empty countryside found way out on the tip of Long Island.

Suddenly, there was a blinding flash, a jaw-rattling _boom!_ , and the car exploded.

At first Naruto and Percy felt weightless, like they were being crushed, fried and hosed down all at the same time.

"Ow," Percy said as he peeled his forehead off the back of the driver's seat.

"Percy!" Sally shouted, "Naruto!"

"I'm okay…" Percy said.

"Let's agree not do that again," Naruto responded.

The car hadn't really exploded. They had swerved into a ditch. Their driver's-side doors were wedged in the mud. The roof had cracked open like an eggshell and rain was pouring in.

"It must have been lightning," Percy said before noticing a big motionless lump. "Grover!"

Grover was slumped over, blood trickling from the side of his mouth. Percy shook his furry hip. Then he groaned, "Food."

"He's okay," Naruto sighed with relief.

"Percy! Naruto!" Sally said, "we have to…" Her voice faltered.

Percy and Naruto looked back. In a flash of lightning, through the mud-spattered rear windshield, they saw a figure lumbering toward them on the shoulder of the road. It was a dark silhouette of a huge guy, like a football player. He seemed to be holding a blanket over his head. His top half was bulky and fuzzy His upraised hands made it look like he had horns.

Percy swallowed hard. "Who is—"

"Percy," Sally said, deadly serious, "You and Naruto get out of the car."

Sally threw herself against the driver's—side door. It was jammed shut in the mud. Percy tried his. Stuck too. Percy looked up desperately at the hole in the roof. It might've been an exit, but the edges were sizzling and smoking.

That's when Naruto appeared on the roof holding his backpack.

"Need help?" Naruto asked.

"Naruto—when?" Sally said turning to see that his passenger door was opened.

"Right about when you started trying to open your doors," Naruto said.

Naruto took off his rain jacket and used it to wrap the edges of the hole.

"Percy, help me get Grover through the hole!" Naruto responded.

Percy nodded and tried to hold Grover up. Naruto leaned down through the hole and grabbed Grover's shoulders and lifted him up through the hole. Naruto then dragged Grover to the windshield window to lie Grover on the hood of the car before helping Percy through the hole, finally Sally, with Percy's help.

"Percy, Naruto, you have to run. Do you see that big tree?" Sally asked.

"What?" Percy sked.

Another flash of lightning, and they saw the tree she meant: a huge, White House Christmas tree-size pine at the crest of the nearest hill.

"That's the property line," Sally said. "Get over that hill and you'll see a big farmhouse down in the valley. Run and don't look back. Yell for help. Don't stop until you reach the door."

"Mom, you're coming too," Percy said.

Her face was pale, her eyes as sad as when she looked at the ocean.

"Food!" Grover moaned little louder.

The man with the blanket on his head kept coming toward us, making his grunting, snorting noises. As he got closer, Naruto and Percy realized he _couldn't_ be holding a blanket over his head, because his hands—huge meaty hands—were swinging at his sides. The bulky, fuzzy mass that was his actual head and the horns were actual horns.

"He doesn't want _us_ ," Sally told Percy and Naruto. "He wants you two. Besides, I can't cross the property line."

"But…" Percy said.

"We don't have time, Percy. Go with Naruto. Please."

"No," Naruto said, "I don't leave a friend or comrade behind."

Naruto carried Grover on his beck as they started stumbling uphill through wet waist-high grass.

Naruto glanced back and got a good look at the monster. He was seven feet tall, easy, his arms and legs were like something from the cover of _Muscle Man_ magazine—bulging biceps and triceps, all stuffed like baseballs under vein-webbed skin. He wore no clothes except underwear—I mean, bright white Fruit of the Looms. The top half of his body was so scary. Coarse brown hair started about his belly button and got thicker as it reached his shoulders.

His neck was a mass of muscle and fur leading up to his enormous head, which had a bull like snout, snotty nostrils with a gleaming brass ring, cruel black eyes, and horns—enormous black-and-white horns with points you couldn't get from an electric sharpener.

Naruto recognized it from Latin Class, and apparently so did Percy.

"That's—" Percy said.

"Pasiphae's son," Sally said. "I wish I'd known how badly they want to kill you."

"But he's the Min—"

"Don't say his name," she warned. "Names have powers."

The pine tree was a hundred yards uphill at least. Naruto knew he could make it up there with no problem, even with Grover on his back, but there was still the problem with Percy, who wasn't exactly the best runner; and Sally, who might try and go on her own once they cross the property line. Even if the Bull-man was after Percy and him, Naruto knew one slip up could cause it to go after her.

The bull-man hunched over the car, snuffling and nuzzling in the widows.

"Food?" Grover moaned.

"Shhh!" Naruto responded.

"Mm, what's he doing?" Percy asked. "Doesn't he see us?"

"His sight was hearing are terrible," she said. "He goes by smell. But he'll figure out where we are soon enough."

As if on cue, the bull-man bellowed in rage. He picked up Gabe's Camaro by the torn roof, the chassis creaking and groaning. He raised the car over his head and threw it down the road. It slammed into the wet asphalt and skidded in a shower of sparks for about half a mile before coming to a stop. The gas tank exploded.

"Whoa!" Naruto responded.

"Percy, Naruto," Sally said. "When he sees us, he'll charge. Wait until the last second, then jump out of the way—directly sideways .He can't change directions very well once he's charging. Do you understand?"

"Sure," Naruto responded.

"How do you know all this?" Percy asked.

"I've been worried about an attack for a long time. I should've expected this. I was selfish, keeping you near me."

"Keeping me near you? But—"

Another bellow of rage, and the bull-man started tromping uphill.

"Ah, guys! He smelled us," Naruto said.

They started scrambling up the hill, which was getting steeper and slicker. Naruto focused chakra to his feet so they stick on the ground without sliding.

The bull-man closed in. Another few seconds and he'd be on top of us.

"Go, Percy! Go, Naruto! Separate! Remember what I said.

Percy and Naruto sprinted to the left—Naruto still carrying Grover. Percy turned early and saw the creature bearing down on me with his eyes glowing with hate.

The bull-man lowered his head and charged with the razor sharp horns aimed straight at Percy's chest.

"Percy!" Naruto yelled.

Percy held his ground, and at the last moment jump to the side. The bull man stormed past like a freight train and slammed its head into the tree.

It struggled there for a while—due to one of it's horns being stuck to the tree.

Naruto and Percy were already at the crest of the hill, Naruto placing Grover at the base at the huge tree. Down the other side they could see the valley, just as Sally had said, and the light of a farmhouse glowing yellow through the rain. But that was half a mile away.

The bull-man broke off its horn and turned to Sally, who was now retreating slowly downhill, back toward the road, trying to lead the monster away from them.

"Run, Percy! Run, Naruto!" she yelled. "I can't go farther. Run!"

"No, wait!" Naruto yelled about to head down.

Before he could reach Sally, the monster started charging right toward her. She tried to sidestep, but the monster had learned his lesson. His hand shot out and grabbed her by the neck as she tried to get away. He lifted her as she struggled, kicking and pummeling the air."

"Mom!"

"Mrs. Jackson!"

She caught Naruto's and Percy's eyes, and managed to choke out one last word: "Go!"

Then with an angry roar, the monster closed his fist around Sally's neck, and she dissolved before their eyes, melting into light, shimmering golden form, as if she was a holographic projection. A blinding flash, and she was simply gone.

"No!"

Naruto was the first to act as he ran toward the Minotaur full of rage. However, the Minotaur swiped at Naruto sending him crashing into some trees. Naruto felt some of his ribs cracked but that didn't stop him. Red chakra started releasing from Naruto's body as his finger nails and toe nails grew into claws, his k9 teeth grew longer and his whisker like lines on his cheek grew darker and wider.

At the same time, Percy wasn't paying attention to Naruto's partial transformation. All he knew was that the monster that killed his mother was going after his best friend.

Percy ripped off his red rain jacket.

"Hey!" he screamed, waving his jacket, running to one side of the monster. "Hey, stupid! Ground beef!"

"Raaaarrrr!" the monster turned toward Percy shaking his meaty fists.

Percy had an idea, a stupid idea, but better than no idea at all. He put his back to the big pine tree and waved his red jacket in front of the bull-man, thinking he'd jump out of the way at the last moment.

But it didn't happen like that.

The bull-man charged too fast, his arms out to grab Percy whichever way he tried to dodge.

Time seemed to slow down as Percy tensed his legs before leaping straight up, kicking off from the creature's head, using it as a springboard, turning in midair, and landing on the monster's neck.

 _How did I do that?_ Percy didn't have time to figure it out. A millisecond later, the monster's head slammed into the tree and the impact nearly knocked out Percy's teeth out.

The bull man staggered around, trying to shake Percy off. Percy locked his arms around the bull-man's remaining horns to keep from being thrown. Thunder and lightning were still going strong. The rain was in Percy's eyes. The smell of rotten meat burned his nostrils.

The monster shook himself around and bucked like a rodeo bull.

Naruto got up and saw his friend hanging for dear life. Naruto glared at the Bull-man, made a hand sign, created shadow clone, and had it help him form the Rasengn.

The bull-man wheeled toward Naruto, pawed the ground again, and got ready to charge. Percy gripped it's remaining horns with both hands and pulled backward with all his strength. The monster tensed, gave a surprise grunt, then— _snap!_

The bull-man screamed and flung Percy through the air. Percy landed flat on his back in the grass. His head smacked against a rock.

"Hey bull-man!" Naruto yelled.

The Minotaur turned only for Naruto to move so fast it couldn't process what Naruto was doing until Naruto jabbed it with a Rasengan.

The Rasengan send the Minotaur flying backward and crashed landed next to Percy.

The Minotaur roared in agony before turning into a sandcastle and collapsed into a pile of sand that was blown away by the wind.

Red chakra dispersed around Naruto as he transformed back to normal. When it did, Naruto felt a combination of exhaustion and slight pain from his ribs.

Percy was no better, as he collapsed onto the grass barely conscious.

Naruto tried to walk to his friend as well, but ended up collapsing onto the grass.

Naruto tied to get up but failed, but not without hearing A familiar bearded man, but was horse from the waist down with a girl with blonde curly hair about the same age as Percy and a guy who was at least seven years older with sandy blonde hair showed up.

The girl checked on Percy while the guy checked on Naruto.

"Chiron, this one is conscious!" the guy yelled as he helped Naruto up

"So is this one. They could be the one. They must be," said the girl.

"Silence, Annabeth," the man said. "Bring them both—"

He paused and the last thing Naruto remembered before passing out was a combination of blue and silvery-white light, Naruto managed to look up with the last ounce of his strength and two holographic images next to each other side by side: a staff with wings at the top and two snakes wrapped around it, and white owl clutching a silver olive branch. Naruto passed out shortly afterword.

* * *

 **A/N:** Poll results...

Cabin 6 (Athena's): 30 votes

Cabin 11 (Hermes'): 5 votes


	6. Naruto Earns His Place at Camp

**A/N:** Good portion of this chapter is based off of SoulReaperCrewe's 'Son of the Huntress' chapters. So thanks SoulReaperCrewe

* * *

 **Naruto Earns His Place At Camp**

Naruto woke up to a familiar sight from before he went to Yancy. He was in a unfamiliar room in a medical bed that he wasn't in before. He rose steadily and rubbed his eyes, trying to remember the last thing he remembered—Grover being a satyr, a bull-man, Sally being squeezed to death, him and Percy taking it down, people coming to their aid, and some light show with two weird holographic images Naruto couldn't make heads or tails out of.

Naruto heard a voice coming from next to him and turned to see Percy lying on a bed similar to his with a blonde haired girl feeding him some weird liquid stuff while trying to get answers from him.

"Will he be all right?" Naruto asked causing the girl to jumped.

She turned to Naruto with a startled face.

The girl was about the same age as Percy, and was very pretty. She had tanned skin like Naruto's, with long blonde hair that curled at the back. She had grey eyes and wore an orange shirt that said Camp Half-Blood on it along with a blue skirt that stopped just above her knees and blue sneakers.

"Don't scare me like that!" she said slightly startled at hearing Naruto's voice and watched him as he started to stand up.

Naruto felt a little stiff, but his ribs weren't aching, so he guess that the Fox healed him with his chakra. He began to stretch a little getting the knots out of his joints.

"How are you up? You shouldn't be awake for another day at least, let alone fully healed," the girl said surprised.

"I always been a fast healer," Naruto said, "I once woke up five days earlier than I was supposed to."

"Seriously?" Annabeth asked.

"That's what I been told, at least," Naruto responded before turning to his pal, "So, to repeat my last question, will he be okay."

"Oh… urm… yeah. He will be fine. He just needs rest. He should be up by tomorrow," Annabeth said.

"That's good," Naruto said as he extended his hand, "I'm Naruto Uzumaki."

The girl looked over Naruto as if studying him to find a way to tear Naruto down. But there was another look in her eyes, like she was trying to compare Naruto to someone or something. Finally she smiled and shook his hand. "Annabeth Chase. It's nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you too." Naruto responded, "So, can you tell me where I am?"

"You're at Camp Half-Blood, safest place for people like—us." Annabeth seemed to hesitate on the last bit as if she wasn't sure if Naruto really was what she was talking about.

Naruto quirked an eyebrow. "What does that mean?"

"I'll let Chiron and Mr. D explain things to you," Annabeth said. "In fact, I better take you to them."

Naruto shrugged, grabbed his bag that was next to his bed, and followed her out of the room.

"You're in the medic wing at the moment. You and your friends were brought in late last night. Caused a bit of a ruckus," she said.

Naruto turned and saw the Greek letterings all above the wall and on the floor, which he could read perfectly.

"Yeah, sorry about that. We didn't plan for Pasiphae's son to try and shish kabob us," Naruto said.

"You know your Greek history?" said the girl impressed.

"My grandmother wanted me to brush up on my Greek Mythology when I came to New York," Naruto said.

"What about your parents?" Annabeth asked as if interrogating them.

"They died when I was born," Naruto responded, "I never even got to know them."

"Oh—sorry to hear that," Annabeth responded.

"It's okay," Naruto responded, "According to a note my grandfather left me, they cared for me, and they died as heroes."

Annabeth smiled while taking mental notes about Naruto and his physical features.

 _"If he is related to Athena, it explains why she would want him to learn about Greek History,"_ Annabeth thought, _"but what's up with those whisker marks? They're not traits of either Athena's or Hermes' kids."_

They continued around the porch—which wrapped around the farmhouse. Meantime, Naruto was enjoying the sites. The valley marched all the way to the water, which glittered about a mile in the distance. Between the house and the water, the landscape was dotted with buildings that looked like what Naruto guess what Greece might have looked hundreds of years ago—an open air pavilion, an amphitheater, a circular arena, white marble columns sparkling in the sun.

There were also modern stuff. There was a volleyball net at a sandpit where a dozen high school-age kids and satyrs played volleyball. Canoes glided across a small lake. Kids in bright orange T-shirts like Annabeth's were chasing each other around a cluster of cabins nestled in the woods. Some shot targets at an archery range. Others rode horses with wing down a wooden trail.

Down at the end of the porch, two men sat across from each other at a card table. Grover was sitting on the other side of them holding a shoe box. Grover noticed Naruto and yelled, "Naruto!"

Grover trotted over and gave Naruto a big hug.

"Hey, Grover. Nice to see you up and about," Naruto responded.

"Same here!" Grover responded, "Come on! Chiron would want to see you!"

Naruto took a good look at the other two men. The one facing him was small, but porky. He had a red nose, big watery eyes, and curly hair so black it was almost purple. He resembled a combination of a soccer dad and an alcoholic gone silver. He wore a tiger-pattern Hawaiian shirt.

 _He looks like someone who could have been one of Grandma Tsunade's drinking buddies,_ Naruto thought.

The other guy was in a wheel chair that Naruto recognized immediately.

"Mr. Brunner," Naruto responded.

The Latin teacher turned and smiled at Naruto.

"Ah, Naruto, you're awake," Mr. Brunner said, "I didn't expect you to regain conscious until tomorrow."

"I heal rather quickly," Naruto responded.

"I see," Mr. Brunner responded. "How about you join us?"

"Sure!" Naruto responded.

Naruto sat close to the other guy and Annabeth joined them as Grover went back to where he was. Naruto noticed they were playing some kind of poker game.

"Cool! Can I play?" Naruto asked.

The man turned to Naruto surprise. "You know how to play pinochle?"

"No, but I can learn," Naruto responded, "Fair warning though, I _never_ loose a game of chance and luck."

"We'll see about that," the man said as he deal Naruto some cards and told him the rules and how to bet, "Let's see if you're not all talk boy.

"Naruto, this is Mr. D, the camp director," Annabeth said.

"Uh-huh," Naruto responded without removing his eyes from his cars.

"Annabeth, why don't you let your cabinmates and those from Cabin eleven Naruto is awake," Mr. Brunner said.

Annabeth nodded reluctantly, studied Naruto a bit more, and left.

"So, Mr. Brunner, you work here?" Naruto asekd.

"Yes, I do. But I'm afraid that Mr. Brunner was a pseudonym. You may call me Chiron."

"The centaur that trained Jason, Hercules, Achilles, and a bunch of other heroes?" Naruto asked.

"The very same," Chiron said, "This wheelchair you normally see me in conceals my horse's half. I normally use it when I meet new comers."

"Magical wheelchair—cool!" Naruto responded.

"I must say, Percy," Chrion said. "I'm glad to see you and Percy alive. It's been a long time since I've made a house call to a potential camper less than two. Although, I didn't expect you to be a Legacy."

"A legacy?" Naruto asked looking up from his hand.

"Naruto, how much do you remembered about the Olympians from Latin class?" Chiron asked.

"Which ones, the Greeks or the Romans?" Naruto joked.

That gain a few chuckles from almost everyone around him.

"Right, well, as you remembered, the Olympians would sometimes come to the mortal world and have kids with mortals," Chiron said.

"Yeah, demigods like: Theseus, Hellen, Heracles, and all that," Naruto responded.

"yes, and sometimes if demigods live long enough hey can have children, and grandchildren and so on and so forth," Chiron said, "Some become as famous as the demigod children of the Olmypians themselves, such as Odysseus and Jason of the Argonauts."

"And you think I'm one of them?" Naruto asked.

"Naruto, this maybe hard to believe, but the Olympians are still around. They been moving west over the past millennium from country to country to wherever their influence is strongest, and for the past century, Olympus and anything mystical involvements of what Mortals call Greek Mythology has moved to the United States or at least places near it, and to this day, Olympians still have demigods children," Chiron said, "And although for reasons we have yet understand that demigods are in greater danger now than they were in the past, some have manage to have their legacies."

"Okay, I understand," Naruto responded. "So one of my grandparents on both my dad's side and mom's side are an Olympian—"

"If your parent's were demigod—or what we call half-blood children—then yes," Chiron said.

"They were," Naruto said, "So then who is my Olympian Grandmother and Olympian Grandfather."

"The symbols above your head should be clear of that," Chiron said.

Naruto remembered the holograms strange staff and the owl and thought back to Latin Class of each Olympian symbols of powers and sacred animals. "Athena and Hermes."

"Goddess of Wisdom and God of Travelers," Chiron said. "I believe one of them was your father's Olympian mother or father while the other was the same as for your mother. I must say, you're the first grandson of two Olympians to come to camp. Most legacies I taught were at least down the line related to one Olympian as far as we know of."

"Then I'm one of a kind," Naruto said with his traditional grin.

"Yes, and could mean you will inherit skills and abilities from both of your divine grandparents. Especially since the abilities and powers of each Olympian can pass down from their kid to legacy for four generations," Chiron said, "I'll leave that to your new family to fill you in about."

"Great!" Naruto responded.

"You're taking this rather well than most campers I seen," Chiron said.

"Let's just say, I seen crazier stuff than this," Naruto responded.

"How so?" Mr. D asked.

"Well, since you're being straight forward with me, I should be straight forward with you," Naruto said. "Have any of you heard of the elemental nations?"

Annabeth and Grover stared at Naruto like he was trying to pull something over them. Chiron and Mr. D however were surprised.

"We are aware of the other world. From time to time we gods visit that world," Mr. D said before staring at Naruto suspiciously. "How do you know of it?"

"Well, you see—wait, you're a god?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, but I'm here for reasons I don't think I should tell you," Mr. D said before summoning a glass of wine on the table.

"Mr. D, your restrictions," Chiron said.

"Right, right, forgot," he said before the glass disappeared and was replaced by a diet coke can.

It didn't take long though for it to click in Naruto's brain.

"You're Dionysus! God of Wine, parties, and insanity!" Naruto responded getting a nod from Mr. D who was now starting to looked impressed.

"That is correct. But I would not go around throwing names," Dionysus warned. "By the way I believe I won this hand."

Dionysus set his cards down and show a full house.

"Actually, I have you beat," Naruto said setting his cards down revealing a royal flush.

"What? How is that possible? You never switch card!" Dionysus responded.

"I didn't need too," Naruto responded.

Chiron folded knowing it was pointless to beat Naruto's hand and spoke up, "You were saying Naruto, before we trailed off."

"Oh, right. I was telling you about the Elemental Nations. Well, the reason I know about it is because I'm from the Elemental Nations," Naruto said, "Village Hidden in the Leaves in the Land of Fire, to be exact."

"This must be a lie," Mr. D responded.

"I'm not lying! Watch!" Naruto said as he made a hand sign, "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

A shadow clone appeared next to Naruto and he extend his hand toward the clone as it help him form the Rasengan. Once he was done he brought it forward to show it off.

Grover gasped at the sight as Mr. D inspected it.

"Yep, that's chakra," Mr. D said now with an amused look on his face. "Now this is the first. We never had a demigod or legacy of the Elemental Nations."

"Really?" Naruto asked.

Mr. D nodded. "Since those in the Elemental Nations are capable of using chakra and are trained to be shinobi or kunochi, and most monsters that are threat to them are only located in this world, there was no need to bring our kids here. It's also cause of it the elemental nations are chop full with legacies as well."

"Well, my grandparents brought me here because there were some trouble stirring in the elemental nations and I guess they wanted me to come here to help train here," Naruto responded.

"You think your grandparents brought you here?" Chiron asked.

"At least one of them," Naruto responded.

"Probably Hermes," Dionysus said. "He's known for sneaking around without father knowing."

"Hold on! What is the Elemental Nations? What's chakra? What was that blue thing Naruto made and how did he created a copy of himself?"

Chiron was happy to fill Grover and Annabeth about the elemental nations while Naruto added a few things left out. By the end Grover was gob smacked.

"To think a world like that existed," Grover responded.

"Now you know how I feel when I came to this world," Naruto responded.

"But my question is what would be so dangerous that Hermes and Athena would want to bring you here?" Dionysus asked.

"I'm not sure myself, last I heard—" Naruto said.

"What?" Chiron asked.

"There was a group of rogue ninjas, shinobies who left their respective village after breaking laws, and they're after me for something I have," Naruto responded.

"What do you mean?" Chiron asked.

"That's where things get a bit more complicated," Naruto responded. "Have any of you heard of the Nine-Tail Fox?"

This gained him look from the God and Centaur.

"I have," Dionysus said, "It was a giant fox like creature as tall as the skyscrapers in New York City. It's suppose to be a massive form of charka in living form. It's so powerful it's said it could destroy mountains and cause tsunamis with a flick of its tail, from what I heard—" Mr. D stopped and looked down at Naruto, "You're a Jinchuriki of the Nine-Tail Fox, aren't you?"

Naruto nodded nervously.

Mr. D stood up and ordered, "Let me see the seal!"

Naruto nodded and lifted his shirt, channel chakra through his body, and after a few seconds a sea appeared on his stomach. Chiron and Grover were rather curious about it as Mr. D got down on one knee and started looking over the seal.

"Have you met another Jinchuriki before?" Naruto asked.

"Once before. From the Village Hidden in the Cloud," Mr. D said. "Annoying lad who loves to rap. But he did have the potential to control the power of his tailed beast: The eight tail bull. Of course his village had a private place where either Jinchurikis master their tailed beast power if they can figure out the secrets of how."

Mr. D finished looking over the seal.

"Well, from what I gathered it is an Uzumaki clan style seal, go figure. They're the seal masters of the Elemental Nations"

"My dad—the Fourth Hokage: Minato Namikaze—he sealed the fox into me, but—" Naruto said, "I inherit my mom's maiden name for my own protection on my parents last request to keep me safe. My mom—Kushina Uzumaki, she was probably from the Uzumaki clan."

Mr. D nodded, "Makes sense, I learn a few things there, and one of them is clan jutsus can only be shared to those outside the clan is when the person marries into the family. I'll have to keep an eye on you since we never had a shinobi let alone Jinchuriki demigod at camp before—at least until you can master the beast's chakra, if you can. The seal is design to let any seal that tries to leak out to mix in with your own chakra, but we cannot be too careful."

Naruto nodded as Mr. D went to explain to Chiron what a Jinchuriki was. Naruto turned to his friend Grover and realized he was still carrying the shoe box.

"Hey, Grover, what's in the shoe box?" Naruto asked.

"Oh, here," Grover said, "It's for you. Percy gets the other one after he wakes up."

Grover gave Naruto the shoe box. Naruto opened it to see it was a black and white horn, just like the one that broke off the Minotaur.

"We had to get that one dug out of a tree," Grover said, "Their a trophies of war."

"Thanks," Naruto responded.

"It's the least I can do, since you and Percy save me," Grover said. "I should have protected you better—all of you."

"Grover, you did a good job," Chiron said, "That's two more you have bought to safety."

"It should have been five," he whispered.

"Well, since we got the basics out of the way, I doubt we need an orientation film, but we still have the problem where you should stay," Chiron said.

"What do you mean?" Naruto asked.

"It's tradition that demigods stay in the cabin built for their Olympian parent, and eat with their siblings at their table. Although its rare for Legacies to come here, we would have the same arrangements for them if they have one divine ancestor," Chiron said, "However, Naruto, you have two divine Grandparents, both of whom claimed you at the same time."

"Why don't I just stay in one cabin to sleep and eat with the other?" Naruto asked.

"It's unheard of," Mr. D said.

"But Naruto does have the rights," Chiron said. "Grover, how about you take Naruto around and find Annabeth. I'm sure she would be happy to introduce Naruto to Cabin Six."

"Why?" Naruto asked.

"Annabeth didn't tell you?" Grover asked.

"Tell me what?" Naruto asked.

"Annabeth is the daughter of Athena," Chiron said. "Which makes her your aunt."

"What?" Naruto responded.

"Come on, Naruto!" Grover responded dragging a shock Naruto.

…

Grover start the tour for Naruto.

"First, the building we were just at is known as the Big House. Basically that is HQ of camp, and where you will most likely find Chiron and Mr. D," Grover said.

Naruto nodded as he looked around. They passed by several campers of many ages around with either bows, swords, or other assorted weapons in their hands. Others had maps or books while others carried around tools. Several of the campers nudged each other. One pointed toward the Minotaur horn Naruto was carrying. Another said. "That's _him_. One of the two from last night."

Most campers were older than Naruto. There were satyrs bigger than Grover, but all were wearing orange CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirts, with nothing else to cover their goat halves.

The way they been staring at Naruto was much like how Annabeth did. Some were trying to figure Naruto out. Some were looking at Naruto as if he was an outcast of the whole camp.

Naruto knew how it was like, anyone that was the odd ball out of the group can be consider the outcast, it's the same as being the new kids in school. Still, Naruto had bad experiences as one and was planning to change that.

They walked through the strawberry fields where campers were picking bushels of berries while satyr played a tune on the reed pipes.

Grover told Naruto that they grow strawberries to sell to restaurants and mount Olympus for the Camp Funds. Camp Half-Blood maybe a secret camp but it was still a summer camp.

"Hey Grover, how does Athena have kids?" Naruto asked. "I thought she was one of the virgin goddesses like Artemis and Hestia."

"She was and still is," Grover said, "You'll have to ask your aunts and uncles from Cabin six."

"Oh goody," Naruto responded, "So Grover how were you assign to Percy and me?"

"Well, I wasn't exactly assign to you two specifically," Grover said. "Satyrs are send off too specific assigned schools across the country where we search for potential half-bloods and by the end of the year, if we think they're ready, we bring them here. But only when we find a powerful half-blood we are ordered to call Chiron."

"And you thought Percy and I were powerful?" Naruto aksed.

"Well, Percy I knew, but we weren't sure about you at first," Grover said, "Your scent was strong, but different. But I guess that it's now because you were a jinchuriki of a fox demon and also a Shinobi demigod."

"Yeah, I would appreciate you not tell anyone," Naruto responded. "I'm not dangerous, but some people take the meaning of Jinchuriki the wrong way."

"I don't blame you," Grover said, "From what Mr. D said, most people would be precocious. But you and Percy saved me, and I spend enough time with you two in Yancy to know you can be trusted."

"Thanks, Grover," Naruto responded.

Grover showed Naruto to the Pegasus stables, the forges, the circular arena, the archery field, the canoe lake, the open air pavilion where campers eat at assigned cabin tables, and the amphitheater where Grover said campers have camp fire where they sing and tell stories.

Finally they reached the woods where Grover. "The woods are stocked with monsters, so it's best to come in here armed with weapons."

"I still have some of my ninja tools," Naruto responded.

"Unless they're made out of Celestial bronze, it won't do any good against monsters," Grover said. "Celestial Bronze is a type of magical metal that can destroy monsters."

"Great—" Naruto said, "And I doubt this place stock on Kunais and shurikans."

"No, but if you show them to one of Hephaestus kids, they might make you some," Grover said. "Or sometimes the Olympians gives their kids some magical weapons. Maybe they do the same for their legacies."

Finally Grover showed Naruto the cabins. There were twelve cabins, nestled in the woods by the lake. They were arranged in a U, with two at the base and five in a row of either side. Not a single cabin is the same.

The only thing the cabins had in common was the brass number above the doors (odds on the left and evens on the right). Number Nine had smokestacks, like a tiny factory. Number four had tomato vines on the walls and a roof made out of real grass. Seven seemed to be made of solid gold, which gleamed so much in the sunlight Naruto had to look away.

Cabins one and two were the only one close to identical. Both looked like his-and-her mausoleums, big white marble boxes with heavy columns in front. Cabin one was the biggest and bulkiest of the twelve. Its polished bronze doors shimmered like hologram, so that from a different angles, lightning bolts seemed to streak across them. Cabin two was more graceful somehow, with slimmer columns garlanded with pomegranates and flowers. The walls were carved with images of peacocks.

 _Zeus' and Hera's Cabins_ , Naruto thought.

They all faced a common area around the size of a soccer field, dotted with Greek statues, fountains, flower beds, and a couple of basketball hoops.

In the center of the field was a huge stone-line firepit. A girl about nine years old was tending the flames, poking the coals with a stick. As if sensing Naruto, she turned to him and gave him home-welcoming smile before getting up and went into the flames. Naruto's eyes widened as she vanished in the flames.

Naruto thought it was a trick in the light and decided to ask Grover about the empty cabins: Zeus' along with Cabins three and eight.

"Zeus Poseidon and Hades made an oath after World War II to have no more kids since the war was mostly fought between their children," Grover said, "I take it you know about Hera's reason since you didn't ask about her."

"Goddess of marriage, won't have any kids with anyone other than with her husband," Naruto said.

"Right and cause of it Cabin 2 is honorary," Grover said, "And Cabin Eight is mostly honorary too—Artemis' cabin."

"What do you mean mostly?" Naruto asked.

"Artemis has maiden hunters, hand picked girls that joined her in the hunt. When they come to visit they stay at Cabin Eight," Grover said.

"Nice—hey, why doesn't Hestia have a cabin?" Naruto asked. "I thought she was an Olympian before Dionysus."

"She was, but when she stepped down as Olympian, she gave up her honorary cabin," Grover said. "Most forget about her, but not all. That's why instead of having a cabin built in her honor, we have a hearth."

Grover pointed to the fire pit.

"What about children of minor gods and goddesses?" Naruto asked.

"We rarely come cross minor godlings that are worthy of coming to camp, most are safe from monsters anyways as their scents might not be strong enough to attract any," Grover said, "But those that we do bring here, stays at your grandfather's cabin: cabin eleven along with any other demigod children waiting to be claimed by their Olympian parents as well as his own kids."

"Why?" Naruto asked.

"Hermes is the god of travelers. He takes in any demigod that needs a place to stay until they're claimed or as long as need too," Grover said.

"That's nice—I guess," Naruto said. "They should really built something to house the minor god's kids though."

"Oh, look what we got! Fresh blood!"

Naruto turned to see a buffed girl around thirteen or fourteen, wearing a XXXL CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirt under a camouflage jacket with two of her own goons. She had a sneer on her face that told Naruto she was a bully type and new campers were her favorite victims.

Anyone who was outside playing around stopped to look at what was going on and started whispering.

"Uh-oh—"

"—another one of Clarisse's victims—"

"—he's so doom."

"The name is Naruto Uzumaki," Naruto responded.

"What ever! I'm not here to find out if it's true about you!" Clarisse said.

"About what?" Naruto asked.

"That you were one of the two who defeated the Minotaur," Clarisse said.

"Yeah, why?"

"Just that we wanted to test you out ourselves!" Clarisse said snapping her finger.

Her two buddies surrounded Naruto.

"Okay, I was hoping not to fight on my first day, but—" Naruto handed Grover his Minotaur horn and pushed up his sleeves. "But I guess it's a good way to demonstrate shinobi lesson number one: Taijutsu."

One of the goons decided to charge Naruto first with a fist in the face. Naruto caught easily with one hand.

"First off, you have great power, but lack speed," Naruto said before kneeing him in the gut, knocking the wind out of him, then striking the back of his head.

Then the second goon came from behind and struck Naruto in the back of the head. However, when Naruto hit the ground he turned to a log. Naruto appeared from behind and gave him the biggest ultimate wedgy in he can.

"Secondly, if you're going to use the element of surprise, wait until you have an opening," Naruto responded.

Clarisse charged at Naruto side but Naruto jumped so quickly over her it seemed as if he disappeared.

"What the—" Clarisse was stopped with a kunai knife to the neck.

"Lastly, expect the unexpected, no matter if you outnumber someone or not," Naruto warned, "If you don't it could cost you your life."

Everyone watching was in shock. Naruto guess no one either had the nerve to stand up against Clarisse or never beat her.

Naruto retreated his kunai knife and sealed it away as Clarisse turned to him. The other two of her goons got up wanting another round, but Clarisse waved them off telling them it was over.

"Not bad newbie. Not many new campers stand a chance against us," Clarisse said, "My name Clarisse la Rue, daughter of Ares god of war."

Clarisse extended her hand.

Naruto smirked and took her hand to shake. "Naruto Uzumaki, grandson of Athena: goddess of wisdom and Hermes: god of travelers."

"So you're the legacy kid we heard," Clarisse said, "I thought they were joking when they said one of the newbies was a descendant of two Olympians."

"Nope, I'm the real deal," Naruto responded. "And as lucky as I get, I do know how to fight."

Clarisse smirked and let go of Naruto's hand. "See you later, Legacy Boy."

"Naruto, that was cool!" Grover said.

"It was risky!" someone said.

They turned to see Annabeth walking up to them. "Challenging Clarisse like that—you must have gained her respect or else she would have pulverize you!"

"Yeah well, I need to step out of the outcast zone eventually," Naruto responded.

"Um, Annabeth, Chiron said—" Grover said.

"I'll show Naruto to Hermes and Athena Cabin," Annabeth said, "And make sure he doesn't get in trouble."

Naruto had a hard time holding back a stifled laugh as he nodded okay.

…

Annabeth first showed Naruto Cabin Six, which was gray building with white curtains and a design of an owl over the door like the one that appeared above Naruto's head last night, only this one seemed to be watching Naruto as he got closer to the cabin.

Inside looked like a perfect place for brainiacs. The bunks were all pushed against one wall as if sleeping didn't matter very much. Most of the room was filled with workbenches and tables and sets of tools and weapons. The back of the room was a huge library crammed with old scrolls and leather bound books and paperbacks. There was an architect's drafting table with a bunch of rulers and protractors, and some 3-D models of buildings. Huge war maps were plastered to the ceiling. Sets of armor like from Chiron's classroom hung on the walls.

The kids that were there were seriously athletes, obviously, and they had tanned skin and blonde hair like Naruto's, only their's was curly and instead of gray-blue eyes, they had stormy gray eyes. When Naruto came in they turned to him.

"Naruto, this is everyone at Cabin Six," Annabeth said, "Everyone, this is our nephew who showed up last night: Naruto Uzumaki."

A boy came up, obviously Annabeth's brother—or at least half-brother.

"So which one is it?" he asked.

"What is it?" Naruto asked.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "He means which one of your parents was the child of Athena."

"Oh—um—my dad, at least that's what I been told," Naruto said.

"Was he a famous Architect?"

Naruto raised his eyebrow and Annabeth had to explained, "Athena's children normally became famous architect."

"Oh—um—well, no, but my dad was a war hero," Naruto responded. "Even became leader of my home town."

Everyone didn't seemed disturbed by the news.

"Malcom," Annabeth said, "Naruto might be staying with us—"

"I'll prepare a bed for him," Malcom responded.

"Come on Naruto, I'll show you to your maternal family," Annabeth said pulling Naruto out of the cabin.

However as soon as they were out of hearing range Annabeth stopped him.

"You got to try harder than that, Naruto," Annabeth said.

"What?"

"I get this is your first day here, but Athena's kids are expected to be wise, creative, great battle strategist. Even if your dad choose to be a soldier instead of an architect."

"He didn't just choose, he was," Naruto responded.

"I'm just saying, since your dad is the son of Athena, not only you're representing your Olympian heritage, but also your half-blood legacy," Annabeth responded.

"Well, next time give me a heads before I get questioned about my dad or my mom, considering both of my parents died the night I was born and the only thing I know about them is what I been told."

Annabeth sighed. "You're right. I'm sorry. But take my word when I say everyone in Cabin Six are good people. Don't take their questioning the wrong way."

"I won't," Naruto responded. "Besides, I been good friends with all sorts of types of geniuses in the past, now I just need to being actually related to some. By the way, there's a question I need to ask you about Athena that I'm curious about—"

"If you're about to ask what I think you're going to ask, then don't ask it out here!" Annabeth warned in a dead serious tone.

"Yes, ma'am," Naruto responded.

Next they went to Cabin Eleven, which was not as glamorous as Cabin six. It actually looked like a regular summer camp cabin. The threshold was worn down, the brown paint peeling. Over the doorway was a winged pole with two snakes wrapped around it. Naruto realized it was the second item that appeared above his head.

"A caduceus," Annabeth said, "Hermes' symbol of power. Go on!"

Inside was packed with people, both boys and girls, way more than the number of bunk beds. Sleeping bags were spread all over the floor. It looked like a gym where the Red Cross had set up an evacuation center.

 _I understand taking in unclaimed and half-blood kids of minor gods and goddesses, but this is ridiculous,_ Naruto thought.

Naruto went inside and the occupants turned to him. Naruto noticed that a some of kids had almost the same traits as his: upturned eyebrows, sharp noses, and mischievous smiles. Others had sad depressed looks, as if they're waiting for something that never came.

Annabeth announced. "Naruto Uzumaki, meet cabin eleven."

"Determined or Undetermined?" somebody asked.

"Determined," Annabeth said, "Naruto here is the grandson of Hermes."

That gained some interest from the mischievous group that Naruto guess were his aunts and uncles.

A guy who was older than the rest came forward. Naruto realized he was the same guy from last night. However there was one trait of Luke's Naruto saw last night—at least not to well: A white thin line scar that ran through one side of his face that looked like knives went through it. "Welcome Naruto. Hermes must have took interest in you to claim you last night along with Athena. My name is Luke."

Luke stuck his hand out and Naruto took it and shook it.

"I take it you're joining our cabin?" Luke asked.

"Actually, I'm just visiting checking out the cabins and then decide which cabin I can stay in and the other one I can eat," Naruto said, "Although if Gramps' cabin is this pack, I think I'll take up on that offer in Cabin Six."

Luke laughed. "I don't blame you. Hermes accepts so many unclaimed that I sometimes think he forgets his cabin gets filled passed capacity."

"Why is it so stuff? I wouldn't think it takes so long for Olympian to claim their kids," Naruto asked.

"Some do, but others… well, they get so busy with their domains that they forget they have kids," Luke said, "If you mind me asking, which parent was the child of Hermes?"

"My mom," Naruto responded. "Kushina Uzumaki—she um, died when I was born along with my dad."

"Oh—sorry to hear that," Luke said.

"Don't worry about it," Naruto responded, "Well if that's it for the tour, I think I'm going to explore the camp myself."

"Be back before six for dinner!" Annabeth said.

Naruto waved his hand letting them know he got it.

…

Naruto explore some of the camp finding himself good training areas for him to train. Finally he stopped at hill with a whole view of the camp. Naruto didn't even hear the conch horn or payed attention to the time before coming up here.

"This wouldn't be a bad spot to camp out once in a while," Naruto responded.

Naruto heard the sound of a horse riding toward him and turned to see Chiron coming to him, only from the waist down Chiron was a white stallion missing a head and neck. Naruto couldn't help but whistle in amazement.

"Ah, there you are, Naruto," Chiron said. "I trust Grover gave you the tour."

"Yep, and dropped me off with Annabeth who introduced me to my family," Naruto said.

"Good, so have you decide where you will be sleeping?" Chiron asked.

Naruto nodded, "I'm thinking of staying with Athena's Cabin. No offense to Hermes, I can understand why he is willing to take in any unclaimed and children of Minor gods, but his cabin has too many campers in it."

Chiron nodded. "Yes well, many of the Olympians don't claimed their kids as quickly. Only few like Athena, Demeter and Apollo are willing to claim their kids on arrival."

"Hermes don't?" Naruto asked.

"Oh, Hermes does claim his kids. But some earlier than others," Chiron said.

Naruto remembered what Luke said about Naruto being special to get claimed by Hermes right away.

"By the way, Naruto, you will be allowed to join Hermes' cabin at their table, and you are welcome to stay at Hermes Cabin," Chiron said, "When it comes to Capture the Flag and other camp activities, you might have to choose sides if Athena and Hermes goes against each other or you can stay out of them."

"I think I'll try and stay out of competition that pinned Athena's and Hermes' Cabins against each other," Naruto said. "I can use the time to train on my ninjutsus instead."

Chiron nodded. "Oh, that reminds me, this was send to the Big House after Grover took you on a tour."

Chiron handed Naruto two things. One what looked like an average ninja pouch like Naruto had in the elemental nations. Naruto opened it and inside were filled with your basic ninja weapons: Kunais and Shurikans. Only difference from the ones Naruto had were these were made out of bronze. The other was a hard cover book, but instead of written in English it was written in Ancient Greek. There was a note attack to the book and Naruto picked it up and read it.

 _Naruto,  
I knew you'll need ninja weapons made out of celestial bronze to fight monsters, so I had Hephaestus forge these for you specifically. They also have a mixture of chakra metal to help you with your wind elemental training. They're enchanted to return to your pouch after use, so you'll never run out of them, but I still advised you use them wisely.  
Also, Hermes wanted you to know, if you chose to stay in my cabin, he's won't blame you as long as you spend time to get to know your relatives in Cabin eleven. The same for me if you decided to stay in Cabin Eleven, as you do have family in Cabin Six. _

_Sincerely,_

 _Athena_

 _P.S. the book given to you was one of your parents favorites. I had it translated for you to read once you learn how._

Naruto smiled reading the letter.

"Come Naruto, I better take you to dinner," Chiron said.

Before Naruto had time to respond, Chiron picked him up and placed him on his back before galloping toward the open air pavilion at top speed.

…

Naruto never rode on a horse before, less than a centaur, and it happened so fast and by surprise that when Chiron stopped the pavilion, it took Naruto a few second to snap out of his shock.

However before Naruto could go in, Chiron stopped him.

"Mr. D has informed me of the hardships of the Jinchuriki and we agreed that when we introduced you to the camp we'll tell them about the elemental nations but not about the Nine-Tail Fox without your permission," Chiron said, "But I want you to know that you don't have to hold the burden yourself. Everyone here knows what it's like to be outcast, and when you decide to tell them, many won't use it against you."

"Thanks," Naruto responded as he placed his new weapon pouch on his belt.

Chiron nodded lead Naruto into the pavilion.

Even before they came in Naruto knew most of camp was in there from the laughing and chattering, but Naruto had no clue how many there were until he came into the pavilion. There must have been around two hundred campers varying from different ages. They all sat at a specific stone table.

Naruto could tell right away which one was Hermes' tables. Like the cabin itself the table was overflow with campers.

Another table made Naruto blush when he saw that all the people sitting at the table were incredibly pretty. They all had perfect skins and all wore make up, although some wore more than others. Both the boys and girls seemed to be girly, although the boys looking girly didn't bother Naruto as much as he remembered the first time he met Haku without his mask, and mistaken Haku for a girl.

At another table was where his family from Cabin Six were sitting, along with Annabeth.

Then there was the table Clarisse was sitting at, the biggest and muscular kids of the whole camp.

Naruto noticed four tables that were completely unoccupied. Naruto guessed that like the cabins, each campers was assigned to a specific table, with an exception of himself who was allowed to stay in two cabins thus welcomed in two tables.

When Naruto walked in the commotion all seemed to stop and everyone turned to Naruto and those who haven't got the honor of meeting Naruto began to whisper.

"Hey, it's him. The legacy boy!"

"I heard he took down three of Ares own kids."

"He must be a good fighter to do that and be one of the two to take down the—you know."

"Look at those whiskers on his face. He looks hot!"

Naruto blushed at the last comment.

"Luke!" Chiron hollered.

Luke got up from his table and walked over.

"Naruto decided to eat at your table, but will be staying at Cabin Six," Chiron said, "Make sure Annabeth knows."

Luke smiled, "Yes sir. Come on, Naruto. Let me show you to your seat."

Naruto nodded and headed toward the overflow table.

"Make room, guys," Luke told his cabin mates as the table shift a little as Naruto took a seat next to Luke.

Chiron headed to the head table where Mr. D, a bunch of Satyrs, and two twin plumped blond boys that Naruto guess was Mr. D's own sons.

Finally, as Naruto got situated, Mr. D got up from his seat rather reluctantly. He cracked his knuckles before he stood in front of everyone so the pavilion quiet down to almost no talking to hear what he was about to say.

"Alright, listen up, because I will only say this once," he said in a bored tone. "As you all know, we had two new arrivals last night. One is with us tonight while the other is still unconscious and is healing. I'm sure you have all been wondering whether the rumor about them defeating the Minotaur and about the one with us is the Legacy of both Athena _and_ Hermes was true. Well, I'm here to clarify that it is indeed true."

That caused many to begin whispering before Mr. D gave them a look that quickly shot them up. He snapped his fingers and the shoebox containing Naruto's Minotaur horn appeared in front of him. Naruto opened it up and many gasped a little when they saw the horn, knowing now full and well that it was true—at least about the Minotaur. Many of the Hermes' table marveled at it while Clarisse's table were looking at him with a bit of jealousy in their eyes, but didn't dare challenge Naruto to prove it. Naruto guess they heard about his little squabble with Clarisse and two of her goons.

Then Mr. D spoke again, "The one who joined us is Nagato Urunagi.

Naruto nearly collapsed from hearing his name pronounced wrong. Through his whole talk with the god of wine, Mr. D avoided using his name, and now he just got it completely wrong.

Chiron spoke into Mr. D's ear. "Oh right, Naruto Uzumaki."

"Don't feel bad, Mr. D gets all our names wrong," Luke said.

Naruto nodded as he guessed it was just Mr. D's way of showing absolute no favoritism.

"Anyways, Mr. Uzumaki is the first legacy to arrive in camp in centuries, but as we know from the stories of Odysseus and Jason of the Argonauts, legacies can be proven as heroes if they're proven good enough. Of course being the Legacy of two Olympian parents means he could have the abilities from both Olympians. However, Legacy or not, Naruto is not like a normal demigod and is quite different from all of you."

Many of the campers glanced at Naruto curiously.

"By different, I mean he's not from our world, but rather another world," Mr. D said.

That immediately shut everyone up and all began to listen intently.

"Unknown to many of this world, there is a separate dimension, an alternate world know as the Elemental Nations. There the landscape is completely different and they have their own cities—some of which is called villages—and history that dates back thousands of years if not longer."

"There they have warriors known we know as ninjas but what they call shinobies and kunochis. Some even have samurais. They live their part of everyday society, and these shinobies, kunochies, , can use a type of energy called chakra—quite similar to what some of our cultures calls chi. Only the ninjas there can use charka to bend elements, use hand to hand combat in ways we can only dream of, create illusions that are similar to how the Mist is used, and even combine chakra with weapons. Their society is different from the ones you all know in this world."

"Now normally, the gods of Olympus does visit there, and yes, we do have kids there. But over there is safe from the monsters we have that can sniff out monsters, in fact the only dangers there are for half-bloods are attacks from enemy villages there. But because of it, there can be hundreds of generations of demigods there."

"Now, Nagato—I mean Naruto—from what I been told, is the son of two great shinobi demigod heroes and is the first legacy-demigod brought here, for reasons only Hermes and Athena knows," Mr. D finished up, lying about the reason, "Therefore please welcome him with open arms." Mr. D returned to his seat.

For the next few minutes the whole room was silent as every eye was on Naruto who was shifting uncomfortably in his seat. Many were gobsmacked like how Grover was. Annabeth was watching Naruto like Christmas came early.

"N-Naruto, is that true?" Luke asked him. Naruto nodded confirming what Mr. D just said was indeed true.

"Do you think you can show us a shinobi trick?"

"Urm—sure," Naruto said as he stood up. Everyone turned in their seats to get a good look at Naruto to see what he was about to do.

Naruto decided to do a simple wall walking which he had mastered to doing as if it was second nature back in Yancy. Naruto applied chakra to his feet as he walked over to one column and placed his foot on it before walking up the column as if he was walking on the ground.

Everyone stared in amazement by Naruto trick.

"I wonder if that's all he can do?" Naruto heard someone said.

Naurto jumped down and landed on the ground with ease and made the hand sign. "Multi-shadow Clone jutsu!"

Naruto created five clones and each made another hand sign, "Transform!"

All the shadow clones transformed into a perfect image of Mr. D, which was another sign improvement Naruto made since coming to this world. Everyone was impressed by the five duplicates as they keep comparing them to Mr. D who was surprisingly impressed, mostly because he can tell the clones solid almost real deal clones.

Naruto cancelled out his jutsus as his clones disappeared in a puff of smoke and he transformed back to normal only to be warmed by curious campers wanting to ask him about the elemental nations, what other jutsus he can use, and was that log trick he pulled on Clarisse and her goons one of them. Naruto swear he even heard someone if he had a girlfriend.

"Alright, return to your table!" Chiron yelled.

Many of the kids grumbled as they headed back to their tables and Naruto rejoined Hermes' table. Naruto doubt he was an outcast anymore, but he knew he can't shake the feeling that he still need to prove himself in the field before he's consider as one of the campers, and that what he can do is not just for show.

"Well now, since introductions is over, we can eat," Chiron said before stamping his hooves and shouted out, "TO THE GODS!"

"TO THE GODS!" everyone shouted, including Naruto before everyone began to fill their plates.

Naruto quickly learned that their goblets filled with any drink you ask, as long as it was non-alcoholic drinks. After all, even if Dionysus wasn't on probation most of the campers at camp were under age.

Elfish girls that Luke told Naruto were Dryads, or wood nymphs, then came out with more platters of food which was filled with grapes, apples, strawberries, cheese, fresh bread, and a whole variety of food.

Naruto looked over his choice of food, which all looked amazing, but there was one thing missing.

"I wonder if they do ramen?" Naruto asked aloud. A passing wood nymph heard him and she clicked her fingers. When she did, a big bowl of ramen with noodles, and pieces of pork appeared in front of them.

Naruto ended up thanking the nymph a hundred times before preparing himself a small bowl of ramen.

Naruto was about to chow down when Luke motioned him to get up and follow him.

They walked to a line leading toward the fire in the center of the pavilion. As Naruto got closer, he saw that everyone was taking a portion of their meal and dropping it into the fire, the ripest strawberry, the juiciest slice of beef, the warmest, most buttery roll.

Luke explained, "Burnt offering for the gods. They like the smell."

"Okay…" Naruto responded.

Luke approached the fire, bow his head, and tossed in a cluster of fat red grapes. "Hermes."

Naruto was next. He didn't know if he should make an offering to Athena or Hermes. It seemed that everyone did it for their Olympian parent, but Naruto had two Olympian Grandparents.

Finally he decided to make offerings to both. First Naruto took a scoop of noodles and pork, making sure to get half of the biggest pork pieces and spilled them into the fire but not too much of the soup to put the fire out.

"Athena."

Then Naruto took another scoop and did the same thing a second time.

"Hermes."

When he did Naruto got a smell he didn't expect. Instead of burnt food, Naruto got the smell of fresh bake food of everything that was tossed in. Naruto smiled and headed back to Hermes table.

While eating, Naruto got to talk to a couple of uncles of his—both full blood brothers from the same mother and father: Connor and Travis Stoll. They weren't twins but they looked so much alike with mop brown hair and being tall combine with their Hermes traits, Naruto mistaken them for twins.

They laughed as they shared stories of some of the pranks Naruto pulled back in the elemental nations and at Yancy. However, when Naruto told them about how he skipped his last day of class in the academy before his final exams to become a ninja to paint the whole face monument of the ninja-leaders of his village in broad daylight wearing an orange jumpsuit for everyone in his village to see, the whole table burst out laughing as the Stoll Brothers bowed to Naruto in respect. It was clear to Naruto that the Stoll brothers respected high quality pranks.

Eventually dinner ended and everyone made their way down to the amphitheater where children of Apollo were singing an acapella version of a variety of songs while everyone else was roasting marshmallows and telling stories.

Naruto was having the most fun of his life when he sensed someone sitting next to him and turned to see it was Annabeth with a notepad and pencil.

"I'm guessing you want to learn more about the Elemental Nations," Naruto said.

Annabeth shook her head wildly.

"Well first off, I want to make clear that I _never_ been to a nation that has a Samurai controlled village and that I don't know how their system works," Naruto responded.

"Understood," Annabeth responded.

Naruto nodded with approval as he started to tell Annabeth the concept of shinobies and why they exist. How most ninjas live in certain hidden village as their nation's military force and how most can control chakra. Naruto also explained what chakra was and that those that can't use it for fancy jutsus like Naruto did back in the pavilion can still use it to enhance their Taijutsus in other ways. Naruto also explained the difference between Ninjutsu and Genjutsu since.

Naruto then started explaining about the different ninja nations and how there were Five Great Nations, and then smaller ninja nations. He also explained about the different land scape he know of about the different nations—at least the ones he know of—and explained how smaller nations that are naturally protected by their environment didn't form ninja nations but do rely on their ninja nation allies for assistants if they face a situation they can't handle themselves.

When Naruto described about the landscapes, Naruto noticed that some of the satyrs and the nymphs seem to have gone into a dream-like state.

"Each ninja village as some kind of leader. I know the Village Hidden in the Waterfall has a specific leader chosen, and the Village Hidden in the—" Naruto stopped before saying 'sound' remembering that he was brought here during his mission to stop Sasuke from entering the village and becoming Orochimaru's new vessel.

"Anyways, I'm not quite sure how all the smaller ninja villages formed their leadership, but I do know the Five Great Nation's villages is led by a Kage—the best of best of their village ninjas. Most earned their titles in wars. The village I grew up in, the Village Hidden in the Leaves, is led by the Hokage. The current Hokage is the Fifth Hokage, Tsunade Senju. She's also a member of the Sanin—"

"The leader of your village is a woman?" Annabeth asked with a bit of surprise. "Most of our great leaders in this world were men."

"If it makes you feel better, Tsunade was the first female Hokage," Naruto laughed, "Anyways, Sanin are three of the greatest ninjas that ever fought in the second great war, all three were originally leaf ninjas, all three were students of the Third Hokage: Hiruzen Sarutobi. The other two were Jiriaya, and Orochimaru"—Naruto tried to hide his hatred toward Orochimaru but failed—"Jiriaya was originally offered the position because he trained my dad who was made the Fourth Hokage—"

"Sorry, but did you just say father was the fourth Hokage?" Annabeth interrupted, "I thought you said he was a war hero."

Naruto smiled. "He was. Before he was made fourth Hokage, he won many battles during the third great war. He even died protecting the Leaf Village from an attack. It's one of the reasons I was given my mom's maiden name Uzumaki. My dad made some enemies during the Third Great War, and in order to protect me, when my parent's died, my true heritage was kept a secret until I came to this world."

Annabeth nodded.

"Anyways, Jiriaya gave up the position, and gave it to the next qualified Sanin, Tsunade and for good reasons. Before she was even made Saunin, Tsunade was already well known as being the Honorable Granddaughter of the First Hokage and great-niece of the second Hokage. She single handedly pushed on a medical ninja core to be trained so they can help heal those injured in the battlefield instead of on the side lines, and don't get me started about her physical strength."

"It sounds like you have a bit of respect for her," Annabeth said.

"A little," Naruto admitted as he reached into his t-shirt and took out the first hokage necklace that he kept. "She gave me this when I won a bet that if I master a difficult jutsu in a certain amount of time with the acknowledge that someday I would become Hokage. It originally belong to the First Hokage himself."

"You wanted to become Hokage?" Annabeth asked.

"Since before I even knew my dad was the fourth," Naruto said, "But now—I don't know. It depends if I ever go back to the Leaf Village in the future."

Annabeth nodded and went back to jotting down the rest Naruto mention about the Sanin. She decided not to ask about Orochimaru since it was clear Naruto had bad history with him.

"I take it you like to learn," Naruto said.

Annabeth nodded. "I love it. As a child of Athena, I'm pretty much expected to learn. Reading especially. What about you?"

"Honesty, I'm not much into learning through reading anything that doesn't involve new jutsus," Naruto chuckled. "Although I might give this a try."

Naruto took out his greek translated book.

 _"The Gutsy Ninja?"_ Annabeth asked.

"Yeah, according to Chiron it appeared with a pouch full of celestial bronze basic ninja weapons with a note from Athena. She said this book was my parent's favorite," Naruto explained.

The conch horn was blown and everyone started getting up and headed toward their cabins.

Once in Cabin Six, Annabeth showed Naruto to his own bunk next to the window.

"Oh, hey Naruto. One more thing," Annabeth told Naruto

Annabeth handed Naruto a bright orange CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-shirt and a leather necklace. "The T-shirt and necklace is part of the camp uniform. At the end of the summer the senior Camp Counsellors vote on the most eventful thing that happened in the summer and Hephaestus' cabin makes a bead based off it. They basically symbolize surviving another year."

"Thanks," Naruto responded taking the items.

As Annabeth who apparently was cabin counsellor, called lights out Naruto laid down in his own bunk on the males side. Naruto fell asleep with a smile on his face. Although he wasn't sure if everyone have _quite_ accepted him here, at least he felt at home there.


	7. Percy First Day Starts Off Bad

**A/N:** Portion of this chapter is based off of SoulReaperCrewe's 'Son of the Huntress' chapters. So thanks SoulReaperCrewe

* * *

 **Percy First Day Starts Off Bad**

Naruto was the first in his cabin to wake up. Even Annabeth was still sound asleep in her bunk. If anything good came out of Kakashi making meeting points hours before he would actually arrive is that Naruto grew accustom to waking up early.

Naruto dressed himself in his brand new CAMP HALF-BLOOD T-SHIRT along with grey cargo pants tennis shoes, his first Hokage's necklace and his new beaded necklace around his neck, and attach his new pouch to his belt. Naruto haven't been able to wear his headband since he came to this world due to the metal plating, but Naruto wondered if there's someone in camp that can coat the metal with celestial bronze or something.

Once dressed Naruto snuck out of the Cabin Six without waking up a single camper.

Outside the sun was only starting to rise and Naruto stretched for a bit before getting a good look around. The Cabins were almost the same as they were yesterday, but instead of Cabin seven: Apollo's cabin glowing to the sunlight, Cabin Eight: Artemis' cabin was glowing in the moonlight as if it was the moon itself. Of course even if Naruto try not to notice it would be hard since Artemis' Cabin is next door to Athena's cabin.

"How does anyone sleep with a cabin that glows at night?" Naruto asked himself.

That's when Naruto noticed that the curtains of Cabin 10: Aphrodite's cabin—which looked like a cabin size dollhouse that had the smell of Perfume that was on the other side of Artemis' cabin—windows had drapes and curtains over them. Now that Naruto thought about it, some of his aunts in uncles were draping the curtains over the windows before they went to bed.

 _Whatever works for each cabin, I guess,_ Naruto thought.

Naruto decided to start his early morning training with a nice run around camp a few times. During his laps, Naruto saw some of the wood nymphs heading to the pavilion to prepare the morning breakfast. Some were shock to see a camper up and about at this time but Naruto didn't bother them as he continued his laps.

Naruto finished his laps at the big house where he took time to catch his breath. Chiron was another person who noticed Naruto was awake as he trotted up to the blonde

"My, it's a bit early for you to be up, isn't it Naruto?" he asked, "You couldn't sleep well?"

"No, it's just my Jonin instructor would have us actually wake up around this time and come," Naruto said.

"Sounds like he like to start things early," Chiron said.

"Yeah well, if only that was true. He _never_ comes at the time he told us to arrive at," Naruto responded, "Anyways, I thought since I was up I get some morning work out done."

Chiron nodded in approval, pleased that Naruto was adjusting well to life in camp.

"Well then, I will leave you to it. Remember when the conch horn calls out, breakfast will be ready. I'll be sure to tell your counsellors where you're at."

Naruto nodded. "Thanks."

Naruto watched Chiron then made his way to the sword arena that he was told most went to so they can train.

The arena reminded Naruto much of the arena where the leaf village held the Chunin exam The training ground was large oval shaped with wooden dummies planted all over the place. There were wooden stand wrapped around it where people could most likely watch. Naruto figured it was used for other events.

"Well, let's get this started," Naruto responded as he made the hand sign and created ten shadow clones.

"Alright guys, come at me with everything you got," Naruto said.

"Yes sir!" all the clones responded.

…Two Hours Later…

Annabeth made her way to the arena hoping to find Naruto there.

She let his tardiness to dinner slide considering Naruto was a new camper and was use to doing things on his own since he spend most of his childhood but waking up to find that Naruto was missing caused a panic since most half-bloods that disappeared are never heard of again. She checked Cabin Eleven to see if Naruto may have stopped by there, but Luke told her he hasn't seen him since last night.

When they went to Chiron to tell him what happened, and Chiron reassured Annabeth and Luke both that Naruto had simply woken up earlier than most campers and had snuck out to get an early start on training before breakfast. So now Annabeth was sent to find Naruto to remind him about breakfast.

Annabeth arrived to find Naruto sparing against clones she seen him used during last night's demonstrations. Annabeth admit when she first saw Naruto used shadow clones last night, he thought it was some kind of jutsu for deception, since he was the grandson of Hermes and Hermes' kids are known for it, but watching Naruto spar against clones hand to hand says otherwise.

Naruto saw Annabeth and decided to end it quickly jumped in the air and made a series of hand signs, "Wind Style: Wind Scythe Jutsu!"

Naruto took a breath and blew a twister of with scythes of wind at the remaining clones.

When Naruto landed he winced at the clones' memories of the wind scythe jutsu but still wasn't satisfied.

 _Still nowhere near the level Temari had it. I'm starting to think the fan truly is the trick to her strength in wind style jutsus,_ Naruto thought.

Naruto walked up to Annabeth was gaping at him.

"Are you going to stand there gaping at me?" Naruto asked.

"How—what was that trick with the wind?" Annabeth asked.

"Wind Style jutsu," Naruto responded, "It's difficult to master, but it makes a good finishing move when sparing against my shadow clones."

Judging from Annabeth's expression, Naruto knew he had questions coming soon but first Naruto need a quick shower and get his clothes washed before breakfast.

…

After taking a quick shower, Naruto quickly washed his own clothes and used a wind style jutsu to dry them off before heading to the dining pavilion where he took his seat in Hermes' table.

Naruto learned that camp scrape food for just about every meal for the gods before chatting with each other. The morning went on as if Naruto never disappeared.

After breakfast was Naruto's first cabin inspections. Since he moved in last night Naruto didn't worry about his bunk being a cluttered. From what Naruto told the best cabins gets the best shower time, and the worse gets to help wash dishes with lava after dinner and the inspector _always_ a senior counsellor. Naruto started feeling better about staying in Athena's Cabin after hearing how Hermes Cabin are almost _always_ at last place due to their cabin being over flowed with campers.

After inspections Naruto had his first Ancient Greek class where he learned Ancient Greek with Annabeth. Annabeth was the teacher since she's the best in teaching Ancient Greek. Naruto learned that his brain was hardwired for Ancient Greek, which is why he could understand the language. But at the same time Ancient Greek to Naruto was like a little kid learning the language they speak from their parents, just because it's hardwired in their brain, just because it was hardwired into his brain doesn't mean he can automatically speak the language at will without making some kind of mistake.

After his first lesson Naruto managed to get through a few paragraphs without so much of trouble.

Naruto left the classroom when Grover trotted over to him. "Naruto! Chiron told me to get you! Percy is awake."

Naruto's eyes widened, then he grinned before rushing over to the Big House with Annabeth and Grover following.

When he arrived he found Percy sitting in the same chair he did yesterday and Chiron back in his wheelchair form. The only difference was that Percy and Mr. D seemed to be in some kind of glaring contest. It was obvious Percy said something that angered Mr. D.

"Jeez, Percy. What did you do to anger Mr. D?" Naruto asked as he came up to his friend.

Percy jumped in surprise and turned to Naruto. His eyes widened when he saw his blonde friend.

"NARUTO!" he said leaping out of the chair to give his friend a quick hug. "Thank god you're okay? What is going on? I'm so confuse and—"

"Whoa, calm down Percy!" Naruto responded as he patted Percy on the shoulder. "I know it's a lot to take in, but everything that Chiron and Mr. D have said is the truth."

"You mean the gods being real, and my mom being—"

"Yeah, it's all real. I'm sorry about your mom, Percy," Naruto said.

Percy looked down as he tried to keep his tears at bay. The other had a look of sympathy, especially Grover since it was his job to protect them. Mr. D was the only who looked like he didn't care, but Naruto saw a twinkle in the god's eye as if Mr. D know all too well what it's like to lose a family member.

Naruto noticed Annabeth and decided to change topic. "By the way, Percy, this is Annabeth. She was one of the two campers who found us and nursed you back to health. Annabeth, this is my best bud from Yancy, including Grover, Percy Jackson."

Percy tried not to blush but Naruto noticed it and smirked.

Annabeth glanced at the Minotaur horn in Percy's hands that Naruto realized Grover must have given him, and then studied him as if trying to find a way to take him down.

"You drool when you sleep," Annabeth told Percy.

Percy face fault as Naruto burst out laughing at the blunt comment. Even Grover and Chiron chucked as Percy had a look of his pride taking a hit.

"Urm sorry," Percy said.

"Annabeth, why don't you go find out about Percy's bunk," Chiron said.

Annabeth nodded and left in a hurry.

"I'm tired," Mr. D said. "I believe I'll take a nap before the sing-along tonight. But first, Grover, it's about time we talk, _again_ , about your less-than-perfect performance on this assignment."

Grover's face beaded with sweat. "Y-yes, sir."

Naruto quirked an eyebrow. He had no clue that Grover was in _that_ much trouble. Mr. D seemed to have purposely had Grover waited until both him and Percy had woke up before bringing it up.

Mr. D turned to Percy. "Cabin eleven, Percy Jackson. And mind your manners."

He swept into the farmhouse, Grover following miserably.

"Will Grover be okay?" Percy asked

Chiron nodded, though he looked a bit trouble. "Old Dionysus isn't really mad. He just hates his job."

"Then why is he here?" Naruto asked.

"He's been… ah grounded, I guess you would say, for chasing an off limit Nymph for the second time, and he can't stand waiting another century before he's allowed back to Olympus."

Then Chiron jumped out of his wheelchair revealing his centaur form that caught Percy by surprise as his eyes bugged out.

"Come, Percy Jackson. Let's meet the other campers," Chiron said, "Ah, Naruto, you can join us if you want? I'm sure Percy will need the support from a close friend."

Naruto nodded and tagged along with them.

…

Through out the tour, Percy was careful not to walk behind Chiron.

They passed the volleyball pit. The campers there gave Percy the same response they gave Naruto yesterday, but with a little less questionable looks.

Percy looked back at the farmhouse and must have saw something, because he asked Chiron, "What's up there?"

Chiron looked up to the direction Percy pointed and his smile faded. "Just the attic."

"Somebody lives there?"

"No," he said, with finality. "Not a single living thing."

Naruto had a feeling that Chiron wasn't being truthful but Chiron led Percy further through the camp.

…

They walked through the strawberry fields, where campers were picking bushels of berries while satyrs played a tune of a reed pipes.

Naruto was tempted to take out his _The Gutsy Ninja_ book and attempt reading while following them. He seen Kakashi-sensei done it a dozen times, but Naruto never really tried it himself. Plus Naruto haven't learned enough ancient Greek to read it.

"Grover won't get in too much trouble, will he?" Percy asked Chiron. "I mean… he was a good protector. Really."

Chiron sighed. He shed his tweed jacket and draped it over his horse's back like a saddle. "Grover has big dreams, Percy. Perhaps bigger than are reasonable. To reach his goal, he must first demonstrate great courage by succeeding as a keeper, finding a new camper and bringing him or her safely to Half-Blood Hill. And after the other night, Dionysus and the Council of Cloven might question whether this shows any courage on Grover's part."

Naruto felt bad for his satyr friend but something caught his attention.

"Hey! Let go!"

Naruto turned to see two boys from Clarisse's cabin at the edge of the strawberry field wearing blood red shirts with camo jackets boxed in a younger girl who looked about Percy's age. All Naruto could make out from her was that she had brown hair.

When Naruto saw them snatch the basket the girl was carrying and put it high in the air out of her reach, Naruto started walking over.

Chiron and Percy of course noticed this, Chiron stopped Percy from interfering.

"Give it back! Those strawberries are suppose to be sent off in a couple of days!" the girl said but the two boys towered above her and snickered and were using their size to intimidate her. Both boys looked around thirteen to fourteen but were a very muscular.

"You think we care, weakling. Why don't you try and fight us? Maybe we will give you them back then," said ugly number one causing both of them to laugh and the girls eyes began to water.

"Hey ugly!" Naruto called causing the three to turn and look at him, "Haven't your mother taught you _not_ to bully kids."

"What do you want, kid? Can't you see we're busy, or are you looking for trouble?"

"I guess I have to teach a couple of more Ares' kids a lesson on a little thing called humility," Naruto said as he popped his knuckles.

"Bring it kid!" Ugly number one said.

"Mark! That's the kid who beat Clarisse and two of our brothers yesterday," Ugly number two said.

"I don't care, Sherman. If we beat him, we could earn our place as cabin counsellor instead of having our _sister_ run things."

Naruto quirked an eyebrow. It was obvious these two didn't like the idea of girls having command over them.

Mark was the first to come at Naruto with his fist brought up with the intention of pummeling the blonde hair legacy. Naruto side stepped and dodge the fist with ease.

Mark turned around only to get punched in the gut causing him to collapsed on his knees. Then Naruto knocked him in the back of the head and knocked him out.

Naruto turned to Sherman who still had the strawberries. "Give the strawberries back and take your brother to the medical wing.

Sherman glared at Naruto but nodded, shoved the basket into the girl's hand and dragged Mark out of there.

The girl was gaping at Naruto like a wet fish before managing to say, "T-Thank you."

"No problem," Naruto said.

"You're that legacy-ninja boy, right? Grandson of Athena and _Hermes_ from the elemental nations," said the girl with annoyance at the name Hermes.

"Yeah—I take it you don't like Hermes that much?" Naruto asked.

"Not Hermes—well, not completely. More like his kids—especially the Stoll Brothers," the girl said, "My name is Katie Gardner: daughter of Demeter."

"Naruto Uzumaki" Naruto responded. "So what did my uncles do exactly."

"They pranked Demeter cabin by covering our grass-roof with chocolate bunnies."

Naruto tried to hold back a chuckle. "Sorry about that."

"It's okay, at least you're not like them—at least I hope not," Katie said.

"Only to those who deserve it these days," Naruto responded. "My favorite targets these days are bullies, when I'm not putting them in their place."

Katie rolled her eyes but smiled since Naruto doesn't prank just anyone for the funs of it.

"Katie!"

Both of them turned to see one of Dionysus' sons down in the strawberry field shouting for her. He was telling her they had to take the strawberries they picked to the Big House to get ready for shipping. Since Dionysus and Demeter have powers over certain plants, Naruto wasn't as much surprise about it.

"I have to go," Katie said, "Thanks for helping me again, and I hope to see you around."

Katie headed off toward the Big House.

Meanwhile Naruto headed toward Chiron and Percy to find them talking apparently about satyrs.

"Satyrs mature half as fast as humans, Percy. Grover has been the equivalent of a middle school student for the past six years."

"What about Grover?" Naruto asked.

"Chiron told me Grover is actually twenty-eight," Percy said.

"And that's surprising?" Naruto asked getting a stare from his friend. "We already know Grover was older than your average sixth grader, and since Chiron said satyrs mature half as fast as humans, that means Grover been fourteen for almost two years, right?"

"Yes," Chiron agreed, "At any rate, Grover is a late bloomer, even by satyr standards, and not yet very accomplished at woodland magic. Alas, he was anxious to pursue his dream. Perhaps now he will find some other career…"

"That's not fair," Percy said. "What happened the first time? Was it really so bad?"

Naruto raised a curious eyebrow. Apparently he missed out on a good portion of the conversation.

Chiron looked away quickly. "Let's move along, shall we?"

Percy wasn't about to leave the subject alone, but another thought seem to have gone through his head.

"Chiron," Percy said. "If the gods and Olympus and all that are real…"

"Yes, child?"

"Does that mean the Underworld is real, too?"

Chiron's expression darkened.

"Yes, child." He paused for a bit. "There is a place where spirits go after death. But for now… until we know more… I would urge you to put that out of your mind."

"What do you mean, 'until we know more'?"

"Don't worry about it, Percy," Naruto said knowing fully well what was going through his friend's head. "Come on! We still have more of the camp to show you before you meet my mom's side of the family."

"Your what side of what?" Percy responded.

"You'll see!" Naruto chuckled knowing that would break Percy from his thoughts of the underworld—for now at least.

…

As they got closer, Percy realized how huge the forest was. It took up at least a quarter of the valley, with trees so tall and thick, nobody would had imagine there were people here since the Native Americans.

Chiron told Percy. "The woods are stocked, if you care to try your luck, but go armed."

"Stock with what?" Percy asked, "Armed with what?"

"You'll see. Capture the flag is Friday night. Do you have your own sword and shield?"

"My own—?"

"No," Chiron said. "I don't suppose you do. I think size five will do. I'll visit the armory later. I suppose you need armor too, Naruto."

"Yeah… Hey Chiron, you think there's someone there that can coat the metal plate of my headband with celestial bronze while keeping the symbol about it?" Naruto asked taking out his old headband.

Chiron looked over it, "It might be possible—if not replace the metal. I take it this is great importance to you?"

"It was given to me by the first person who ever acknowledge me for me when I became a ninja," Naruto responded.

Chiron nodded understanding what Naruto meant, "I'll see what I can do then."

The tour continued. Percy got to see the archery range, the canoeing lake, the stables (which Chiron didn't seem to like very much), the javelin range, the sing-along amphitheater, and the arena where Chiron said they held sword and spear fights.

"Why does it look like a twister hit the place with scythes mix into it?" Percy asked noticing some of the damages.

"That was from my sparing match against my clones this morning," Naruto explained, "I had to wrap it up, and I wanted to test the strength of my wind scythe jutsu on the clones."

Chiron then directed them to the open air pavilion, "Here's the mess hall.

"What do you do when it rains?" Percy asked.

Chiron looked at him as if he'd gone a little weird. "We still have to eat, don't we?" Percy decided to drop the subject.

Finally Chiron led them to the cabins.

At the fire pit Naruto thought he saw the girl he saw yesterday during his tour, but when she looked at him, she placed her index finger to her mouth indicating that Naruto should be quiet.

"Zeus and Hera?" Percy guessed at the Cabin One and Two.

"Correct," Chiron said.

"Their cabins look empty."

"Several of the cabins are. That's true. No one ever stays in one or two."

They continued until Percy stopped in front of the first cabin in the left, Cabin Three.

It wasn't high and mighty like cabin one, but long and low and solid. The outer walls were of rough gray stone studded with pieces of seashell and coral, as if the slabs had been hewn straight from the bottom of the ocean floor. Percy peeked inside the open doorway.

"Oh I wouldn't do that!" Chiron pulled Percy away, "Come along."

Reluctantly Percy looked around at the other cabins, but quickly look away when he saw Cabin Seven.

"That's Apollo's cabin," Naruto said, "Artemis' Cabin—cabin eight there"—Naruto pointed at the silver one—"glows just as much in the night time."

"How do—never mind," Percy responded, "I don't want to know."

At cabin five—a real nasty paint job, as if the color had been splashed on with buckets and fist. The roof was lined with barbed wire. A stuffed wild boar's head hung over the door way, which seemed to follow them like how the owl on Athena's cabin seemed to follow Naruto.

Clarisse was in there yelling commands at her bunkmates when she zeroed in on Percy, which Naruto noticed.

"We haven't seen any other centaurs," Percy observed.

"No," said Chiron sadly. "My kinsmen are a wild barbaric folk, I'm afraid. You might encounter them in wilderness, or at a major sporting events."

"What do they do? Cause those sports riots?" Naruto asked.

"Sadly yes," Chiron responded, "And among other things."

"You said your name is Chiron," Percy said. "Are you really…"

He smiled down at Percy. " _The_ Chiron from the stories? Trainer of Hercules and all that? Yes, Percy, I am."

"But, shouldn't you be dead?"

Naruto whacked his friend at the back of the head.

"It's okay, Naruto," Chiron said, "I honestly don't know about _should_ be. The truth is, I _can't_ be dead. You see, eons ago the gods granted my wish. I could continue the work I loved. I could be a teacher of heroes as long as humanity needed me. I gained much form that wish… and I gave up much. But I'm still here, so I can only assume I'm still needed."

"Doesn't it ever get boring?"

"No, no," he said. "Horribly depressing, at times, but never boring."

"Why depressing?"

Chiron seemed to turn hard of hearing again, but Naruto understood. Chiron trained so many heroes for thousands of years, some he even raised, but at the same time Chiron saw most of them die.

"Oh, look," Chiron said, "Annabeth is waiting for us."

Annabeth was indeed in front of Cabin eleven reading a book that was written in ancient Greek.

When they reached her, she looked Percy over critically.

"Well, I have mastery archery class. Naruto, I'll leave Percy in your care, and in Annabeth's if she's willing to look after him when you have any other bullies to take care of," Chiron said.

"Yes, sir," Naruto saluted. Annabeth rolled her eyes but nodded.

"Cabin eleven," Chiron told Percy, gesturing toward the doorway. "Make yourself at home."

Inside the cabin, it was as pack as usual. Chiron didn't go in do to the low door. But when the campers saw him they all stood and bowed respectfully.

"Well, then," Chiron said. "Good luck, Percy. I'll see you at dinner. And Naruto, please try to make it to Cabin Six or Eleven before the dinner conch is blown."

Chiron galloped away toward the archery range.

"Cabin Six or Eleven?" Percy asked.

"I'll explain later." Naruto grinned

Percy stood in the doorway, looking at the kids. They weren't bowing anymore. They were staring at Percy, sizing him up.

"Go on, Percy," Naruto responded.

Percy headed in only to tripped on the door way, making himself look like a total foo. There were some snickers from the campers, but none of them said anything.

Naruto announced. "Percy Jackson, meet cabin eleven."

"Another uncle, Naruto?" someone asked.

"Sorry guys, undetermined," Naruto responded.

Everybody groaned.

Luke came forward. "Now, now, campers. That's what we're here for. Welcome, Percy. You can have that spot on the floor, right over there."

"This is Luke," Naruto said, "He'll be your cabin counsellor for now."

"For now?" Percy asked.

"Unlike Naruto here, you're undetermined," Luke explained patiently. "They don't know what cabin to put you in, so you're here. Cabin eleven takes a newcomers, all visitors. Naturally, we would. Hermes, our patron, is the god of travelers."

Percy looked at the floor wondering if he should put his minotaur horn there until he remembered that Hermes was also the god of thieves.

He looked around at the campers' faces, some sullen and suspicious, some were grinning like Naruto does when he was up to no good, only these guys were eyeing Percy as if they were waiting for a chance to pickpocket him while as for Naruto, when he grins like that it normally means someone is about to be pranked.

"How long will I be here?" Percy asked.

"Good question," Luke said. "Until you're determined."

"How long will that take?"

The campers all laughed.

"Come on!" Annabeth coming in so suddenly Percy jumped. "I'll show you the volleyball court"

"I've already seen it."

"Come on."

She grabbed Percy's wrist and dragged him outside.

"Interesting friend you got there, Naruto," Luke said.

"It's only his first day," Naruto said, "Plus he's not as _accepting_ to stuff like this right away."

"Right," Luke said.

"Well, I better go make sure Annabeth isn't torturing Percy too much," Naruto responded as he headed out.

…

"I can't believe I thought you were the one," Annabeth mumbled under her breath when Naruto came out.

Naruto decided to listen in and not interrupt.

"What's your problem?" Percy asked, getting angry now. "All I know is I helped Naruto kill some bull guy—"

"Don't talk like that!" Annabeth told him. "You know how many kids at this camp wish they'd had yours and Naruto's chance?"

"To get killed?"

"To fight the Minotaur! What do you think we train for?"

Percy shook his head. "Look, if the thing we fought really was _the_ Minotaur, the same one in the stories…"

"Yes."

"Then there's only one."

"Yes."

"And he died, like, gajillion years ago, right? Theseus killed him in the labyrinth So…"

"Monsters don't die, Percy. They can be killed. But they don't die."

"Oh, thanks. That clears it up."

"They don't have souls, like you and me. You can dispel them for a while, maybe even for a whole lifetime if you're lucky. But they are primal forces. Chiron calls them archetypes. Eventually they re-form."

"You mean if Naruto and I kill one with a sword—"

"The Fur… I mean, your math teacher. That's right. She's still out there. You just made her very, very mad."

"How did you know about Mrs. Dodds?"

"I told her," Naruto said causing both to jump.

"How long were you there?" Percy asked.

"Up to Annabeth muttering something about 'the one'," Naruto said causing the two to blush.

"Anyways, she probably would have found out even without me telling you," Naruto said. "You talk in your sleep, Percy."

Percy tried to hide his embarrassment before realizing something and turned to Annabeth. "You almost called her something. A Fury? They're Hades' torturers, right?"

Annabeth glanced nervously at the ground, as if she expected it to open up and swallow her. "You shouldn't call them by name, even here. We call them the Kindly Ones, if we have to speak of them at all."

"Look, is there anything we _can_ say without it thundering," Percy whinnied. "Why do I have to stay in cabin eleven, anyway? Why is everybody so crowded together. There are plenty of empty bunks right over there."

He pointed to the first few cabins, and Annabeth turned pale.

Naruto speak up. "Percy, the cabin arrangements has nothing to do with how pack some might be. It depends on who your parent is, or in your case: your dad."

"He's dead, you know that," Percy responded.

Annabeth sighed. Clearly she heard these conversations before. "Your father's not dead, Percy."

"How can you say that? You know him?"

"No, of course not."

"Then how can you say—"

"Because I know _you_. You and Naruto wouldn't be here if you weren't one of us—or in Naruto's case have parents that was one of us."

"I'm standing right here," Naruto responded.

"You don't know anything about me," Percy argued.

"No?" Annabeth raised an eyebrow. "I bet you moved around from school to school. I bet you were kicked out of a lot of them."

"How—"

"Diagnosed with dyslexia. Probably ADHD, too."

Percy tried to swallow his embarrassment. "What does that have to do with anything?"

"Taken together, it's almost a sure sign. The letters float off the page when you read, right? That's because your mind is hardwired for ancient Greek. And the ADHD—you're impulsive, can't sit still in a classroom. That's your battle reflexes. In a real fight, they'd keep you alive. As for the attention problems, that's because you see too much, Percy, not too little. Your senses are better than a regular mortal's. Of course teachers want you medicated. Most of them are monsters. They don't want you seeing them for what they are."

"You sound like… you went through the same thing?"

"Most of the kids here did," Annabeth responded. "If you weren't like us you wouldn't have survive that Minotaur, much less the ambrosia and nector."

"Ambrosia and Nectar."

"The food and drinks they were giving us to make us feel better," Naruto responded.

"Yes. That stuff would've killed a normal kid. It would turned your blood to fire and your bones to sand and you'd be dead. Face it. You're a half-blood."

Percy had a dozen question that went through his head, but one manage to come out. "What about Naruto? You said, his parents were one of us."

"They were," Naruto said, "My dad turned out to be the son of Athena and my mom turned out to be the daughter of Hermes. Athena and Hermes both confirmed it the night we fought the Minotaur right after we collapsed."

"Wait—Hermes, like the kids—" Percy pointed back at Cabin Eleven.

"They're my aunts and uncles—well, the ones we know are claimed by Hermes I should say," Naruto responded. "That's why I can stay in either Athena's or Hermes' Cabin. I'm the only camper here who can stay in either cabin if I want, but I'm still bound too only two cabins."

Percy was about to ask more about it when someone yelled. "Well. Another newbie!"

They looked over. Clarisse was sauntering toward them. This time she had three other girls behind her, all were obviously Clarisse's half-siblings, at least to Naruto.

"Clarisse," Annabeth sighed. "Why don't you go polish your spear or something?"

"Sure, Miss Princess," Clarisse said. "So I can run you through with it Friday night."

 _"Erre es korakas!"_ Annabeth said, which Percy and Naruto manage to understand as: 'Go to the crows!' though they had a feeling it was a worse curse than it sounded. "You don't stand a chance."

Clarisse rolled her eyes before turning to Percy while ignoring Naruto. "Who's this little runt?"

"Percy Jackson," Naruto said, "meet Clarisse, Daughter of Ares."

Percy blinked. "Like… the war god?"

Clarisse sneered. "You got a problem with that?"

"No," Percy said, recovering his wits. "It explains the bad smell."

Naruto slapped his forehead.

Clarisse growled. "We got an initiation ceremony for newbies, Prissy."

"Percy."

"Whatever. Come on, I'll show you."

"Clarisse—" Annabeth tried to say.

"Stay out of it, wise girl."

Annabeth looked pain as Naruto grumbled under his breath about Percy needing to stop while he was a head.

Percy handed Naruto his Minotaur horn and got ready to fight. Sadly, Percy stood no chance against four kids of Ares, as Clarisse had him by the neck and was dragging him toward a cinder-block building that was the bathrooms.

"Naruto, aren't you going to do anything?" Annabeth asked.

"Percy needs to learn how to stop while he's ahead," Naruto responded. "I can't be there always to slap the back of his head."

"You slap him in the back of the head?" Annabeth asked.

"Only when he deserves it," Naruto responded. "You could always give it a shot."

"I rather not," Annabeth responded. "Come on, we better go after Percy and Clarisse."

They headed up to the bathroom only to arrive in time water exploded out of the bathroom with a large _BOOM!_

Fortunately Naruto and Annabeth were just far enough to not get hit by sewage water. Unfortunately at the time, Clarisse and her goons weren't so lucky as they ran out of the bathroom soaking wet.

Naruto and Annabeth came in once the water works ended to find Percy sitting in the only dry spot in the whole room completely dry.

Percy stood up, his legs shaky.

Annabeth said, "What happened here?"

"I don't know," Percy responded.

"You are dead, new boy. You are totally dead," they heard Clarisse yelled.

"You want to gargle with toilet water again, Clarisse? Close your mouth," Percy yelled.

Naruto whacked him in the back of the head. "Shut up Percy, before you make more enemies."

Meanwhile Annabeth stared at the two.

"What?" Percy demanded. "What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking," she said, "that I want you on my team for capture the flag."


	8. When a Day Goes Bad, Turn to a Friend

**When a Day Goes Bad, Turn to a Friend**

Word of the bathroom incident spread immediately. Wherever Percy went, campers pointed at him and murmured something about toilet water.

Annabeth decided to show Percy a few more places: the metal shop, the arts-and-crafts room, the climbing wall, which actually consist of two facing walls that shook violently, dropped boulders, sprayed lava, and clashed together if campers didn't get to the top fast enough.

Naruto didn't know why he stuck around though, maybe to make sure Percy doesn't cause any more trouble, or to make sure Percy doesn't drive Annabeth up the wall.

Finally they returned to the canoeing lake, where the trail led back to the cabins.

"I've got training to do," Annabeth said flatly. "Dinner's at seven-thirty. Just follow your cabin to the mess hall. Naruto—"

"I'll stay with Hermes Cabin to until after tonight's sing along," Naruto responded.

Percy didn't seem to want to talk. He was still trying to make sense of what happened at the bathroom.

"He needs to talk to the Oracle," Annabeth said.

"Who?" Percy asked.

"Not who. What. The Oracle. I'll ask Chiron."

"Weird," Naruto responded.

Percy stared into the lake, wishing somebody would give him a straight answer for once.

Percy wasn't expecting anybody to be looking back at him from the bottom, so his heart skipped a beat when he noticed two teenage girls sitting cross-legged at the base of the pier, about twenty feet below. They wore blue jeans and shimmering green T-shirts, and their brown hair floated loose around their shoulders as minnows darted in and out. They smiled and waved as if Percy was a long-lost friend.

Not knowing what else to do, Percy waved back.

"Don't courage them," Annabeth warned. "Naiads are terrible flirts."

"Naiads," Percy repeated, feeling completely overwhelmed. "That's it. I want to go home now."

Annabeth frowned, but Naruto waved her off giving her the look that said, _Leave him to me._

"Listen Percy, I know this is a lot to take in—"

"How?"

"Because I was in the same shoes as you when I first came to this world," Naruto said.

Percy stared at Naruto.

"When I first came to this world, I was almost hit by a car more than once, drew a kunai when a car alarm went off, and gave a waitress a hundred dollar tip," Naruto explained.

Percy gave him a _seriously_ look as Annabeth held back a giggle.

"My point is… I was overwhelmed by this world, even by just mortal stuff, but I manage to adjust by time I made it to Yancy," Naruto responded. "It might not happened as quickly for me as it will for you, but I'm sure you can adjust too all the new stuff going on in your life right now too. Especially after finding out your dad who you thought was dead is alive and is an Olympian."

Percy was silent for a while before saying, "Thanks Naruto."

"No problem," Naruto responded patting his best friend on the back.

"Nice choice of words," Annabeth said.

"Sometimes it helps to remember what it's like to walk in the person's shoes," Naruto responded. "If it wasn't for the fact I was already in Percy's shoes before coming to Yancy, I probably would have reacted the same way he did yesterday."

"By the way," Percy turned toward Annabeth, "I haven't got the chance to ask, but who's your dad?"

Annabeth glared at him as if he just hit a touchy subject. Her hand tightened around the pier railing.

"My dad is a professor at West Point," she said. I haven't seen him since I was very small. He teaches American History."

"He's human."

"There are goddesses that have demigod children," Naruto responded. "My dad is a son of a goddess after all."

Percy nodded quickly seeing his mistake. "So whose your mom?" he asked Annabeth.

"Cabin Six."

"Meaning?"

"Athena," Naruto responded, "Goddess of wisdom and battle, and my grandmother on my dad's side, if you remember correctly."

Percy blushed in embarrassment remembering Naruto mentioning it. "Wait then you two—"

"Are related, yes," Annabeth replied. "Same way Naruto is related to a Hermes Cabin."

 _Weird,_ Percy thought. But as he got a closer look, he did see a slight family resemblance. Naruto and Annabeth both had a surfers tan skin, and blonde hair and although Naruto didn't a 10o% grey eyes like Annabeth, if they were related, Percy can see where the grey mix came from, but Percy see more traits Naruto shared from Hermes than Athena.

"What about my dad?" Percy asked.

"Undetermined," Annabeth said. "Nobody knows."

"Except my mother. She knew."

"Maybe not, Percy. Gods don't always revealed their identities."

"Yeah, but Mrs. Jackson isn't your out of the ordinary human," Naruto said. "She saw the Minotaur last night after all."

Annabeth frowned. "She did? How is—you know what, never mind. Right now the only way we can be sure is if Percy's dad send him a sign—like how both Athena and Hermes send you, Naruto, a sign, only it would be one symbol claiming Percy as his own son. That's the only way we know for sure, if it happens."

"You mean sometimes it doesn't?" Percy asked.

Annabeth ran her palm along the rail. "The gods are busy. They have a lot of kids and they don't always… well, sometimes they don't care about us. They ignored us."

Percy thought back to the sullen and depressed kids in Cabin Eleven.

"So I'm stuck here," Percy said. "That's it? For the rest of my life?"

"It depends," Annabeth said. "Some campers only stay the summer. If you're a child of Aphrodite or Demeter, you're probably not a real powerful force. The monsters might ignore you, so you can get by a few months of summer training and live in the mortal world the rest of the year. But for some of us, it's too dangerous to leave. We're year-rounder's. In the mortal world. We attract monsters. They sense us. They come to challenge us. Most of the time, they'll ignore us until we're old enough to cause trouble—about ten or eleven years old, but after that, most demigods either make their way here, or they get killed. A few manage to survive in the outside world and become famous. Believe me, if I told you the names, you'd know them. Some don't even realize they were demigods. But very, very few are like that."

"So monsters can't get in here?" Percy asked.

Annabeth shook her head. "Not unless they're intentionally stocked in the woods or specially summoned by someone on the inside."

"Why would anybody want to summon a monster?"

"Practice fights. Practical jokes."

"Practical jokes?"

"I can think of two from Hermes' cabin who might do that," Naruto responded.

"The point is, the borders are sealed to keep mortals and monsters out. From the outside, mortals look into the valley and see nothing unusual, just a strawberry farm."

"So… you're a year-rounder?" Percy asked.

Annabeth nodded. From the collar of her T-shirt she pulled a leather necklace with five clay beads of different color, as well as a big gold college ring strung on it.

"I've been here since I was seven," she said. "Every August, on the last day of summer session, you get a bead for surviving another year. I've been here longer than most counselors, and they're all in college."

"Why did you come so young?" Percy asked.

She twisted the ring on her necklace. "None of your business."

"Think before you continue, Percy, or you might lose a possible friend," Naruto warned.

Percy nodded and decided to change topics. "So… I could just walk out of here right now if I wanted to?"

"It would be suicide, but you could, with Mr. D's or Chiron's permission. But they wouldn't give permission until the end of the summer session unless…"

"Unless?" Naruto asked.

"If you were granted a quest. It's like those missions you told me about last night, Naruto," Annabeth said, "But that hardly happens. The last time…"

Her voice trailed off but Naruto and Percy could guess the quest didn't turn out well.

"Back in the sick room," Percy said, "when you were feeding me that stuff—"

"Ambrosia."

"Yeah. You asked me something about the summer solstice."

Annabeth's shoulders tensed. "So you _do_ know something?"

"Wait, you were awake before me?" Naruto asked.

"Only for brief moments," Percy responded.

"Do you _know_ something?" Annabeth asked again.

"Well… no," Percy said.

"Back at Yancy, Percy and I overheard Grover and Chiron talked about the Sumer solstice," Naruto responded, "He said something like we didn't have much time—well mostly Percy—"

"What did that mean?" Percy asked.

She clenched her fists. "I wish I knew. Chiron and the satyrs, they know, but they won't tell me. Something is wrong in Olympus, something pretty major. Last time I was there, everything seemed so _normal_."

"You've been to Olympus?"

"Some of us year-rounders—Luke and Clarisse and I and a few others—we took a field trip during winter solstice. That's when the gods have their big annual council."

"But… how did you get there?" Percy asked.

"The Long Island Railroad, of course. You get off at Penn Station. Empire State Building, special elevator to the six hundredth floor." She looked at me like she was sure I must know this already. "You _are_ a New Yorker, right?"

"Oh, sure." Percy responded having a hard time believing it.

Naruto held back a laughed at the thought that they been in New York—him for a year and Percy his whole life—and neither knew that the entrance of Olympus was there.

"Right after we visited," Annabeth continued, "the weather got weird, as if the gods had started fighting A couple of times since, I've overheard satyrs talking. The best I can figure out is something important was stolen. And if it isn't returned by summer solstice, there's going to be trouble. When you came, I was hoping… I mean—Athena can get along with just about anybody, except Ares. And of course, she's got the rivalry with Poseidon. But, I mean, aside from that, I thought maybe the three of us could work together—maybe one of you know something."

Percy shook his head as Naruto responded, "Sorry. Both of us were at Percy's place during all winter break, and when we weren't we were at Yancy."

Annabeth sighed. "I've got to get a quest," Annabeth muttered to herself. "I'm _not_ too young. If they would just tell me the problem…"

Naruto and Percy smell barbecue smoke coming from nearby.

"Must be almost dinner time," Naruto responded, "I hope they got my Ramen ready."

Annabeth and Percy laughed at Naruto's statement.

"I'll catch you later," Annabeth said, "Naruto, if you want to go back to Hermes Cabin until dinner, you can."

"Sure thing," Naruto responded, "Come on, Percy."

…

Back at cabin eleven, everybody was talking and horsing around, waiting for dinner. Percy went over to his spot and sat down while Naruto talked with two full-blood brothers—both sons of Hermes—Travis and Connor Stoll.

Luke came over to Percy and handed him a CAMP HALF-BLOOD orange T-shirt, leather necklace, and even a sleeping bag and toiletries from the camp store."

"Found you a sleeping bag," he said. "And here, I stole you some toiletries from the camp store."

"Thanks," Percy said.

"No prob." Luke sat next to him, pushed his back against the wall. "Tough first day?"

"At first, but Naruto helped," Percy responded.

Naruto was now standing at the ceiling like he'd done it a hundred times before.

"So your dad is Hermes?" Percy asked.

Luke pulled out a switchblade out of his back pocket and used it to scraped the mud off the sole of his sandal. "Yeah. Hermes."

"The winged-foot messenger guy."

"That's him. Messengers. Medicine. Travelers. Merchants. Thieves. Anybody who uses the roads. That's why you're here, enjoying cabin eleven's hospitality. Hermes isn't picky about who he sponsors."

"So… I guess that make you Naruto's uncle," Percy responded.

"From what I been told, yeah," Luke said.

"So, have you ever meet your dad?" Percy asked.

"Once."

Percy waited for more, but apparently there was nothing to it.

Luke looked up and manage a smile. "Don't worry about it, Percy. The campers here, they're mostly good people. After all, we're extended family, right? We take care of each other."

They sat in silence for a bit before Percy broke it.

"Clarisse, from Ares, was joking about me being 'Big Three' material. Then Annabeth… twice, she said I might be 'the one.' She said I should talk to the Oracle. What was that all about?"

Luke folded his knife. "I hate prophecies."

"What do you mean?"

His face twitched around his scar. "Let's just say I messed things up for everybody else. The last two years, ever since my trip to the Garden of the Hesperides went sour, Chiron hasn't allowed any more quest. Annabeth been dying to get out into the world. She pestered Chiron so much he finally told her he already know her fate. He'd had a prophecy from the Oracle. He wouldn't tell her the whole thing, but he said Annabeth wasn't destined to go on a quest yet. She had to wait until… somebody special comes to camp."

"Somebody special?"

"Don't worry about it, kid," Luke said, "The oracle probably was referring to Naruto there. He's not a child—or grandchild of the big three, but being a demigod-shinobi and all—I take it he already told you about where he originally from?"

"Yeah," Percy responded, "Maybe you're right."

A horn blew in the distance and somehow Percy knew it was a conch shell.

Luke yelled, "Eleven, fall in!"

The whole cabin, about twenty one campers, filed into the commons yard. They lined up in order of seniority, so of course Percy and Naruto were in the back row. Campers came from the other cabins with an exception of the four empty cabins, including Artemis which had started to glow silver.

The group marched up the hill to the mess hall. Satyrs joined them from the meadows. Naiads emerged from the canoeing lakes and Dryads melted out of the tree and joined them.

At the pavilion, torches blazed as campers took their seats at their respected table. Too bad for Percy, his butt was half way hanging off the end while Naruto sat where he was last night.

Finally, Chiron pounded his hoof against the marble floor of the pavilion, and everybody fell silent. He raised his glass. "To the gods!"

Everybody else raised their glasses. "To the gods!"

Wood nymphs came forward with platters of the usual food, only this time, one brought Naruto his Ramen. Luke told Percy about his gauntlet and Percy requested blue cherry coke.

Percy filled his plates with smoked briskets and was about to start eating when everyone got up.

"Come on, Percy," Naruto said, "Time to make offerings to the gods."

"Okay…" Percy responded as he got up.

As they waited for their turns, Naruto told Percy how each campers making a scraping of the biggest or juiciest portions to their Olympian parent—or in Naruto's case, make two scrapings to both his grandparents.

Naruto went first and made the first scrapings saying—"Athena"—then made a second scraping saying—"Hermes."

Then it was Percy's turn.

 _Whoever you are, tell me. Please._

Percy scraped a big slice of brisket into the flames and received the pleasant smell of the food offered.

When everybody had returned to their seats and finished eating their meals, Chiron pounded his hoof again for their attention.

Naruto guessed that Mr. D decided to wait until _after_ the feast to make his announcements as the wine god sighed. "Yes, I suppose I have to do this again. Well, hello. Our activities director, Chiron, says the next capture the flag is Friday. Cabin five presently holds the laurels."

A bunch of ugly cheering rose from Ares table.

"Personally," Mr. D continued, "I couldn't care less, but congratulations. Also, I should tell you that our second newcomer has finally woken today. Peter Johnson."

Chiron murmured something.

"Er, Percy Jackson," Mr. D corrected. "That's right. Hurrah, and all that. Now run along to your silly campfire. Go on."

Everybody cheered as they stood up and headed down toward the amphitheater, where Apollo's cabin led a sing-a-long. Naruto noticed that his best friend was having a fun time with campers from Cabin Eleven. Naruto smiled for his friend. At least Percy was starting to feel at home.

That night Naruto wished Percy a good night sleep before heading off with Cabin Six to get some sleep himself. Little did he know that Percy's home-welcoming will be brief.


	9. Capture the Flag with Hellhounds

**A/N:** I changed up the symbol that appeared above Naruto's head for Athena to match the one in the Demigod interactive story I got on kindle.

Also sorry about the late update. My dad was in a bad car wreck and was in the hospital for two weeks. He's fine and is home, but he still has a long recovery and I'll be helping him out so updates will be slower.

* * *

 **Capture the Flag with Hellhounds**

The next few days, Naruto managed to balance his schedule with the help of Annabeth and Luke so he could train with Percy in hopes to help him get claim.

They quickly learned though that every day had a different schedule with only a few lessons being the same.

Every morning after breakfast they had inspections, and much to Percy's bad luck, Hermes Cabin been getting dead last, and Hermes kids—mostly the Stoll brothers—tricked Percy into doing the hardest work after dinner during their kitchen duties. Percy quickly realized not to trust the Stoll Brothers when it comes to chores.

Then they have Ancient Greek with Annabeth, where they talked about the gods and goddesses in the present tense. Percy discovered Annabeth was right about his dyslexia when he haven't had a hard time reading ancient Greek. After a couple of mornings, Percy could stumble through a few lines of Homer without too much headache.

The rest of the week rotates between chores and outdoor activities, mostly to try and figure out who was Percy's father.

First they had Lunch preparations before they had Archery with Chiron.

Naruto found he wasn't a bad shot with a bow and arrow, about as expected from a child of Athena who never used a bow before. However Percy was clearly not a child of Apollo when he shot an arrow at a dryad instead of his target, or when an arrow got snagged in Chiron's tail.

After archery they had lunch where they ate with their respected cabinmates, or in Naruto's case with Hermes' cabin.

After lunch was weapon making with the head counsellor of Hephaestus Cabin, Charles Beckendorf a huge African-American dude with a permanent scowl, muscles like a baseball player, and hands like catcher's mitts which were calloused.

Naruto didn't have a neck for building, sadly, but after one day with Hephaestus Cabin, he did come up with some unique ideas for weapons. Percy on other hand clearly wasn't a child of Hephaestus when he accidentally welded two swords together.

After that they had a foot race with dryads. Of course Naruto was at the top, while Percy found himself slower than a dryad much to his embarrassment. Then they had free time before dinner.

Naruto wished he can say they had better luck on Tuesday. They had store checks before Javelin throwing class. Percy was better at it than with a bow and arrow, but it still didn't help him finding out who his father was.

Then they had canoe races. Percy actually succeeded in that. It seemed the water was willed to help him.

However, canoeing wasn't Naruto's skill as he just peddled in circles before deciding to take off his t-shirt due to the heat, apply chakra to his feet, got on the water, picked up his canoe and walked across the finished line, gaining attention. But it wasn't because of him displaying his trick.

When Naruto took off his T-shirt, he forgot about the scar on his chest from when Sasuke jabbed him with the Chidori that was still visible.

"Darn, Uzumaki, how did you get that?" Clarisse asked noticing it when she came ashore after him.

"A fight with a friend," Naruto responded putting his T-Shirt back on.

"Over what? A girlfriend?" Clarisse asked.

"No, and I don't want to talk about it," Naruto responded.

That pretty much ended discussion after that.

They finished the day off with unarm combat before dinner, which Naruto excelled at but Percy struggled with.

Wednesday though had to be the worse day, when Percy had wrestling after he and Naruto had to learn the different ways to kill a monster. Mostly because in both lessons, Clarisse led the lessons, and both lessons, Percy got the pummeling of his life.

"Think of it this way," Naruto told Percy, "At least you know Ares isn't your dad and Clarisse isn't your half-sister."

"Shut up!" Percy groaned.

During the first three days Naruto noticed the senior campers and counselors were watching Percy, trying to decide who his dad was, but they weren't having an easy time of it. Percy wasn't as strong as Ares kids, or as good at archery as Apollo kids, or had Hephaestus' skills with metalwork, and Naruto been around Percy long enough to know he didn't have any gift with vine plants. Luke told Percy he might be a child of Hermes, a kind of jack-of-all-trades, master of none. But Naruto had a feeling Luke was just trying to make Percy feel better since he didn't know what to make of Percy either.

Despite all that, Percy and Naruto liked camp. Every morning before dawn, Naruto train to the point that Athena cabin stopped worrying about him leaving camp and only send someone to make sure he doesn't miss breakfast. Percy gotten use to the life style of camp as well, but Naruto would sometimes catch Percy thinking about something else, most likely about his mother, or bitterly about his dad who had yet claimed him.

…

Thursday proven to be more resourceful over all when Percy and Naruto had their first sword fighting lessons. Everyone from cabin eleven gathered around the big circular arena, where Luke would be their instructor.

They started with basic stabbing and slashing, using some straw-stuffed dummies in Greek armor. Naruto did better than he expected since before his battle with the Fury, Naruto _never_ used a sword before. A sword was nothing like a kunai knife. It had a reach Naruto wouldn't get out of a kunai and surely Naruto had enough power.

But something about the training swords didn't feel right—as if it wasn't long enough, or had enough power. Whatever it was, there was something off.

Naruto wasn't the only one have trouble with his sword. Percy seemed be struggling with his. Luke had a hard time finding a sword for him.

They moved on to dueling pairs. Luke announced to be Percy's partner since he was the only newbie with the least experience in duels or fighting. Naruto was paired up with a big Hispanic teenager with black hair and brown eyes: Chris Rodriguez. When Naruto first met Chris, he thought Chris was another uncles of his because like every Hermes' kid, he had the sharp facial features only to find out the guy wasn't even claimed.

By time Luke called a break everyone was soaked in sweat. Everybody swarmed the drink cooler. Naruto saw Percy poured water on himself after watching Luke do it, which seemed to energize Percy.

 _Huh, another power over water Percy seem to have,_ Naruto thought.

"Okay, everybody circle up!" Luke ordered. "If Percy doesn't mind, I want to give you a little demo.

Naruto couldn't help but feel bad for Percy when Luke said that, but wanting to see what Luke wanted to show them, he watch anyways.

Luke told everybody he was going to demonstrate a disarming technique: how to twist the enemy's blade with the flat of your own sword so that he had no choice but to drop his weapon.

"This is difficult," he stressed. "I've had it used against me. No laughing at Percy, now. Most swordsmen have to work years to master this techniques."

He demonstrated the move on Percy in slow motion. Sure enough the sword clattered out of his hand.

"Now in real time," he said, after Percy retrieved his sword. "We keep sparring until one of us pulls it off. Ready, Percy?"

Percy nodded, and Luke came after him. Somehow, Percy kept Luke from getting a shot at the hilt of his words and eventually was able to counter all the attacks. After Luke deflected Percy's attack, he started pushing Percy.

Naruto noticed that Percy started having trouble with his sword again, and knew Percy wouldn't stand a chance soon.

Percy must have known it to as he tried the disarming technique.

Percy's blade hit the base of Luke's and he twisted, putting his whole weight into a downward thrust.

Clang.

Luke's sword rattled against the stones. The tip of Percy's blade was an inch from his undefended chest.

The other campers were silent.

"Um, sorry," Percy lowered his sword.

For moment, Luke was too stunned to speak.

"Sorry?" His scarred face broke into a grin. "By the gods, Percy, why are you sorry? Show me that again!"

Percy reluctantly agreed, but this time there was no contest. The moment their swords connected, Luke hit Percy's hilt and send his weapon skidding across the floor.

"Beginner's luck," somebody said.

Luke wiped the sweat off his brow. He appraised Percy with an entirely new interest. "Maybe," he said. "But I wonder what Percy could do with a balanced sword…"

After a brief silence they had pair off so everyone could try the moves themselves.

However, the lesson ended quickly when a sound clattered against the ground and everyone turned to Naruto who was in a position of the final move on Chris.

What happened was Naruto had blocked Chris' sword twisted his body around for a swing forcing Chris to dodge giving Naruto the opening to dive in with his blade at Chris' hilt for the disarming move. The scary part was that during the move, Naruto had no clue what exactly happened, he just saw the move happened and something in his brain clicked as he was able processed the best way to counter.

"Looks like we have two future prodigies with the sword," Luke said. "Good job Naruto."

"Uh, thanks," Naruto responded.

…

Friday afternoon, instead of going to the rock climbing wall with Percy and Grover, Luke told Naruto that Annabeth wants the two of them for a meeting. Apparently Athena allied with Apollo and Hermes—two of the biggest cabins at camp for the game Capture the Flag, and since Hermes and Athena weren't going against each other, Naruto can take part of it. Naruto wanted to try out the rock climbing wall with the lava, but Naruto decided he had plenty of opportunities.

Annabeth held HQ where she taught ancient Greek. Inside children of Athena were coming up with a battle strategy. Only ones there wasn't from Athena besides Luke, was Lee Fletcher: son of Apollo and head of counsellor of Cabin Seven. He was this archer kid with a deep natural sun tan, and hair that was so blonde it match the color of the sun. Lee and Annabeth were at their own section of the room.

"I brought Naruto," Luke said.

"Thanks Luke," Annabeth said, "Sorry to tear you away from helping Percy get claim, Naruto."

"No problem," Naruto responded, "So what do you have planned?"

"Well, we already got an idea for the basic attack force," Annabeth said, "But we can't be sure until the game."

"Well what can you tell me?" Naruto asked.

"Well, we know Ares has allied with Hephaestus, Dionysus, Aphrodite and Demeter," Annabeth said, "The good news is Aphrodite's kids rarely play unless the Hunters of Artemis comes to visit. Demeter and Dionysus has the home field advantage since we're playing in the woods, but Demeter isn't aggressive and only Dionysus' twin sons plays the game. Our biggest obstacle is Hephaestus and Ares cabin. With the two combine they got brains and muscles."

"Not to mention Clarisse would want to nothing more than to humiliate Percy," Naruto responded.

"Right," Annabeth responded. "We can use our sheer numbers to our side, but unless we know what they're planning beforehand, we can't be so sure of ourselves."

Luke and Lee Fletcher nodded.

"If it's intelligence gathering, I'm the man for the job," Naruto said gaining odd looks from the three blondes.

"That shadow clone jutsu I showed off my first night here, it has a useful trick I learned while in Yancy," Naruto explained, "If the clones are destroyed in battle, their memories returns to the user, including their experience. Anyways, if I send my clones out to check out the area during the game and they happen to get destroyed even after being noticed, I can still learn their attack plan… especially since no one on the other team knows the full abilities of the shadow clone jutsu"

Annabeth stared at Naruto as a million ideas went through her head of how they can use Naruto's jutsu. Then her face broke out into a giant smile and began hugging Naruto to death.

"That's perfect. There are so many things we could do with that skill. The information we gather could be crucial. You're a genius!" she said.

Naruto blushed with embarrassment as it was a first time anyone told him that.

"Luke, do you know what this mean?" Annabeth said. "When the hunters come over, Naruto will be our trump card. We might finally beat them." She was getting excited.

"I take it the hunters beat you before?" Naruto asked

Annabeth nodded. "Any time they come to visit we have a game against them, and the Hunters won the last fifty-five times. We may have the home field advantage here but some of the hunters have thousands of years of experience do to being immortal."

"They're immortal?" Naruto responded.

"Not completely. A reward for joining Artemis in the hunt they remain the age they joined at unless they fallen in battle or fallen in love," Annabeth responded. "They're all females, and they have to sworn off men."

"I guess that makes sense," Naruto said, "I mean, considering their patron is Artemis, right? She turned away men to remain a maiden huntress."

Annabeth nodded while Luke had a dark look on his face.

After the meeting Annabeth headed off to tell the rest of Athena's cabin about their new skill while Luke Naruto to where the weapons and armor was being kept.

Luke showed Naruto his armor which was standard armor which strapped onto his chest area and shoulder guards and an imprint of a Caduseus and Owl the armor, but at the same time gave Naruto room to strap he pouch to his belt and strap a sword to his side.

When Naruto tried it on, it was snugged and slightly heavy, but at the same time allow him to have complete mobility.

"Yours is built for mobility and full arm movement for those signs you do with your hands for your ninja tricks," Luke said.

"Cool," Naruto responded.

"Also, I was told to give you this." Luke handed Naruto his old headband back, only this time the metal plate on it were celestial bronze, but other than that it was the same.

"My headband," Naruto responded.

Naruto quickly tied it over his forehead. When he did he felt like he was his old shinobi self, just with armor.

"Normally the game recommend helmets, but it's not necessary," Luke said showing Naruto the ancient Greek Style helmet.

"There's no way I'm wearing that," Naruto responded.

"I don't blame you. Well, other than that is the sword and shield," Luke said.

"I'll take the sword, but no shield," Naruto responded, "I got my own way for defense."

"Suit yourself," Luke said, "We better head in and see what Annabeth has plan for your shadow clones."

"Right," Naruto responded.

They headed in and got the final details of the plans with Naruto's clones.

…

After the meeting Naruto met up with Grover and Percy at the pier. Naruto forgot that he was still wearing his new armor until Grover commented.

"Nice armor," Grover responded.

"Thanks," Naruto responded, "Percy, you'll get yours tonight."

"Right," Percy responded.

Naruto sat down in the pier with them.

"By the way, Grover, how did your talk with Mr. D go?" Naruto asked.

Grover turned sickly shade of yellow.

"Fine," he said. "Just great."

"So your career's still on track?" Percy asked.

Grover glanced at them nervously. "Chiron t-told you I want a searcher's license"?"

"Not me," Naruto said, "I was too busy dealing with bullies."

"He didn't tell me exactly," Percy said. "He just said you had big plans, you know… and that you needed credit for completing a keeper's assignment. So did you get it?"

Grover looked down at the naiads. "Mr. D suspended judgment. He said I hadn't failed or succeed with you two yet, so our fates were still tied together. If either of you got a quest and I went along to protect one of you or both of you, and all of us came back alive, then maybe he'd consider the job complete."

"Well, that's not so bad," Naruto responded, "Right?"

" _Blaa-ha-ha!_ He might as well have transferred me to stable cleaning duty. The chances of either of you getting a quest… and even if you did, why would either of you want _me_ along?"

"Of course, we'd want you along," Percy said.

"Yeah!" Naruto responded.

Grover stared glumly at the water where naiads were basket weaving under water. "Basket-weaving… Must be nice to have a useful skill.

Percy and Naruto decided it might be best to change topics. They talked about canoeing and swordplay for a while, then the debated the pros and cons of the different gods. Percy asked about the four empty cabins and found that Hades didn't have one since he didn't have a thrown.

"Why are Zeus' and Poseidon's empty? They had, like, a bazillion kids in the myths," Percy asked, "Why are their cabins empty?"

Grover shifted his hooves uncomfortably. "About sixty years ago, after World War II, the Big Three agreed they wouldn't sire any more heroes. Their children were just too powerful. They were affecting the course of human events too much, causing too much carnage. World War II, you know, that was basically a fight between the sons of Zeus and Poseidon on one side, and the sons of Hades on the other. The winning side, Zeus and Poseidon, made Hades swear an oath with them: no more affairs with mortal women. They all swore on the River of Styx."

Thunder boomed.

Percy said, "That's the most serious oath you can make."

Grover nodded.

"Why not just make it where Hades can't have any mortal kids?" Naruto asked.

Grover hesitated, "Maybe it was the only way for Hades to agree."

Naruto raised an eyebrow. Grover never been a good liar, so Naruto knew there had to be more.

"And the brothers kept their word—" Percy said. "No kids?"

Grover's face darkened. "Seventeen years ago, Zeus fell off the wagon. There was this TV starlet with a big fluffy eighties hairdo—he just couldn't help himself. When their child was born, a little girl named Thalia… well, the River Styx is serious about promises. Zeus himself got off easy because he's immortal, but he brought a terrible fate on his daughter."

"That's not fair!" Naruto responded. "It's not her fault her dad couldn't keep his oath!"

Grover hesitated. "Naruto, children of the Big Three have powers greater than other half-bloods. They have a strong aura, a scent that attracts monsters. When Hades found out about the girl, he wasn't too happy about Zeus breaking his oath. Hades let the worst monsters out of Tartarus to torment Thalia. A satyr was assigned to be her keeper when she was twelve, but there was nothing he could do. He tried to escort her here with a couple of other half-bloods she'd befriended. They almost made it. They got all the way to the top of that hill."

He pointed across the valley, to the pine tree where Percy and Naruto had fought the Minotaur. "All three Kindly Ones were after them, along with a hoard of hellhounds. They were about to be overrun when Thalia told the satyr to take the other two half-bloods to safety while she held off the monster. She was wounded and tired, and she didn't want to live like a hunted animal. The satyr didn't want to leave her, but he couldn't change her mind, and he had to protect the others. So Thalia made her final stand alone, at the top of the hill. As she died, Zeus took pity on her. He turned her into that tree. Her spirit still helps protect the borders of the valley. That's why the hill is called Half-Blood Hill."

There was a brief silence.

"Grover," Percy broke the silence, "have heroes really gone on quest to the Underworld?"

"Sometimes," he said. "Orpheus, Hercules, Houdini."

"And have they ever returned somebody from the dead?"

"No. Never. Orpheus came close… Percy, you're not seriously thinking—"

"No," Percy lied. "I was just wondering."

Naruto shot Percy a warning look. Naruto could tell Percy was lying, but Naruto hoped Percy wasn't dumb enough to try the impossible.

"So…" Percy said, "a satyr is always assigned to guard a demigod."

"Not always. Satyrs go undercover to a lot of schools and try to sniff out the half-bloods who have the makings of great heroes," Naruto said, "Right Grover.

Grover nodded, "And if we find one with a very strong aura, like a child of the Big Three, we alert Chiron. He tries to keep an eye on them, since they could cause really huge problems."

"And you found Naruto and me. Chiron said you thought I might be special."

Grover looked as if Percy just had led him into a trap. "I didn't… Oh listen, don't think of that—it probably was just a mix up because you were around Naruto, and him being a shinobi-Legacy of two Olympians from another world. If you _were_ —you know—you'd never _ever_ be allowed a quest, and I'd never get my license. You're probably a child of Hermes. Or maybe even one of the minor gods, like Nemesis, the god of revenge."

"Um, Grover, Nemesis is a goddess of revenge," Naruto stated.

Grover turned pink realizing his mistake.

…

That night after dinner, there was lot of excitement than usual.

At last, it was time for capture the flag.

When the plates were cleared away, the conch horn sounded and everyone stood at their tables.

Campers yelled and cheered as Annabeth Malcom and another sibling of theirs ran into the pavilion carrying a silk banner. It was about ten feet long, glistening gray, with a painting of a barn owl above an olive tree. From the opposite side of the pavilion, Clarisse and two of her siblings ran in with another banner, of identical size, but gaudy red, painted with a bloody spear and the boar's heads.

"Those are the flags?" Percy yelled over the noise.

"Yeah!" Luke replied.

"Ares and Athena always lead the teams?"

"Not always," he said. "But often."

"So, if another captain captures one, what do we do—repaint the flag?"

He grinned. "You'll see. First we have to get one."

"At least on our first week we get to play together," Naruto said.

"What do you mean?" Percy asked.

"Athena made alliances with Hermes and Apollo," Naruto replied, "If Athena haven't allied with Hermes, I wouldn't play since I'm part of both Cabins."

Naruto had taken off his armor before heading to dinner, but he had it sealed up and ready to call out.

Chiron hammered his hoof on the marble.

"Heroes!" he announced. "You know the rules. The creek is the boundary line. The entire forest is fair game. All magic items are allowed. The banner must be prominently displayed, and have no more than two guards. Prisoners may be disarmed, but may not be bound or gagged. No killing or maiming is allowed. I sill serve as referee and battlefield medic. Arm yourselves!"

He spread his hands, and the tables were suddenly covered with equipment: helmets, bronze swords, spears, oxhide shields coated with metal.

Naruto took out the scroll he had sealed his gear, opened it, made some quick hand signs and unsealed his armor. Naruto first strapped on his armor, then put on his arm and hand guards. Naruto strapped his pouch full of celestial bronze weapons onto his belt in the back and his sword to his side. But unlike everyone else, instead of putting on his helmet, Naruto took his headband and tied it over his forehead before making sure everything was strapped on correctly.

When he was done he noticed a lot of people were staring at him. Some from Aphrodite Cabin were watching Naruto like he just made their number one boy-toy target.

 _I'm starting to understand why Sasuke ignore fangirls,_ Naruto thought.

Chiron must have sensed Naruto's uneasiness toward the stares because he hammered his hooves reminding everyone of the game.

Percy was struggling with his new armor which was a standard Greek armor with a shield the size of an NBA backboard, with a big caduceus in the middle. His helmet was the same as everyone else's on Athena's side that was wearing one: with a blue horsehair plume on top. Ares and their allies had red plumes.

Annabeth yelled, "Blue team, forward!"

The blue team cheered and shook their swords and followed her down the path to the south woods. The red team yelled taunts at the blue team as they headed toward the north. Naruto noticed Clarisse giving Percy death glares.

Naruto instantly could tell why Mr. D thought the armor might helped him. Despite its size and weight, Naruto felt protected at the same time able to move freely in it.

Meanwhile Percy was trying to get the plan out of Annabeth, much to her annoyance. Finally Percy retreated back to Luke while Naruto too the chance to appear next to Annabeth which startled her until she saw concern in Naruto's eyes.

"What's wrong?" Annabeth asked.

"Clarisse might go after Percy to get him back for the bathroom incident," Naruto responded, "It could run in your favor in the game, but as soon as I'm done with scouting, if he ended up outnumber, I'm going to help him."

Annabeth nodded.

Naruto nodded. "By the way, what kind of advise did you give Percy?"

"Watch out for Clarisse's spear," Annabeth replied.

"Why?"

"Because it sends electric sparks," Annabeth said.

"Did you tell him that?"

"No," Annabeth replied, "But if you want to tell him, go ahead."

Naruto nodded and flanked back to Percy.

"Clarisse's spear is electrified," Naruto said.

"What?" Percy responded, "How do you know?"

"I just ask Annabeth," Naruto replied.

"Why she didn't tell me?"

"I don't know—maybe you annoyed her," Naruto responded.

"Not funny!" Percy said.

"Look, if she comes at you just avoid the spear and stay on her blind side," Naruto said.

"And if I'm out numbered?"

"Well, then you better hope the Olympians have liability for their kids," Naruto responded and laughed when Percy started looking scared and worried. "I'm joking, Percy. Jeez, lighten. Just stay near the creek and you'll be fine."

"What do you mean stay near the creek?" Percy asked.

However Naruto had moved up ahead without answering. Naruto didn't want to tell Percy that he would come to his aid if he's outnumbered, mostly because he didn't want to get Percy's hopes up. Percy needed to fight his own battles after all. But if Percy is near the creek, Naruto can find him.

…

After reaching their half of the forest, the Blue Team that was defending parties containing the unclaimed and half of Apollo's kids went to their designation. Meanwhile, Athena's Cabin, Hermes' kids, remaining Apollo's kids, and Naruto were either the attack force or scouting party.

As soon as the horn went off, Annabeth gave Naruto the nod. Naruto nodded back before he brought up his hands up to make the hand sign for his signature Shadow Clone jutsu. In a few puffs of smoke, eleven Naruto's were now standing in front of him.

"You guys know what to do," Naruto said to the clones.

The clones saluted before leaping off into the trees in different directions.

…Olympus…

The Olympians had gathered in their respected temples to watch the game of capture the flag, mostly because they were aware of the shinobi demigod among their children. Some wanted to watch it for more reasons than others due to another rumor going on about the shinobi demigod and they wanted to see if he was a potential threat.

…

Back with the blue team they patiently waited for Naruto to receive the information while a few were beginning to get angsty.

Naruto finally gained the memories of most of his shadow clones. "Got it!"

Everyone circled around to listen.

"Okay, there are four different groups. One is going down the left side of the forest in a group of twelve. Their being led by Beckendorf. Another is being led by one of his siblings from the right side—it looks like they're trying to sandwhich us in when they get the flag. The third group is Clarisse and four of her siblings from Ares cabin, they're going toward Percy. The rest seem to be led by Mr. D's twin sons who are guarding the flag."

"Naruto, this is fantastic, thank the gods you're playing with us in this game," Annabeth said giving him a quick grateful hug before she started formulating plans and separating people into groups to combat the opposing groups.

One group that was led by Malcolm would go up against Beckenedorf. Connor and Travis will counter the other group from the right, while Annabeth and Luke would lead the battalion against the forces around the flag.

"Naruto, you can go help Percy if needed," Annabeth said.

Naruto nodded and the group broke up into smaller groups and spread out through the forest.

It only took minutes for Naruto to find Percy with his sword and shield near the creek. The shield was far too big for Percy, and the helmet seemed to keep alling over his eyes. Another good reason why Naruto stuck to his headband over those helmets.

While Naruto waited, he decided to work on his wind chakra training, which—since he was on a tree—was cutting a leaf in half with his own chakra. He could hear the sounds of metal clashing and taunts being thrown around.

His focus was broken when he heard a twig broke followed by a growl. When he did, Naruto decided to investigate the sound and leaped off.

It didn't take him too long to find the source of the growl—especially since it was hard to miss.

It was a _huge_ massif dog with lava like eyes and dagger like teeth and what was worse was that it was the size of a car. Naruto knew immediately that this beast had to be a monster, and—although he had absolutely _no clue_ how it got here or how to defeat it—he took out two kunai blades.

However, instead of throwing them at the beast, Naruto did something he doubt even the monster expected. He jumped onto the beast back.

Naruto had no idea why he did that. Maybe he thought being in the air, he could catch it off guard, and strike it's vital point—if he could find them. Either way, the massif dog yelped and started running, trying to throw Naruto off it. Naruto dugged his Kunai into the fur and skin of the beast just to stay on it.

…

While Naruto was having the ride of his life, Percy was struggling against Ares kids. They were pulverizing him since he was on his own.

"The flag is that way," Percy told them trying to get them to leave him alone.

"Yeah," one of Ares' kids said. "But see, we don't care about the flag. We care about a guy who made our cabin look stupid."

"But—didn't Naruto beat two of your siblings?" Percy asked.

"Three actually—" one grumbled.

"It doesn't matter!" Clarisse said, "You're going down!"

She thrust her spear at Percy. If it wasn't for his armor, she would have killed Percy, but that didn't stop him from getting shock. Then the other guy slashed Percy's arm before kicking him into the creek. They all laughed unaware of the mistake they made.

When Percy landed into the creek, the water seemed to have woke up his senses as if he was on a huge sugar and caffeine rush.

Clarisse and her siblings came into the creek to finish Percy off, but Percy stood up and swung the flat of his sword into the first guy's head, knocking the helmet clean off and the owner out cold.

Two more came at Percy, but he slammed one in the face with his shield and then used his sword to sheer off the other guy's plume. Both of them back up quick. The fourth guy was also hesitant to attack, but Clarisse kept coming, the point of her spear crackling with energy. As soon as she thrusted, Percy caught the shaft between the edge of his shield and sword and snapped the spear like a twig.

"Ah!" she screamed. "You idiot! You corpse-breath worm!"

Percy smacked her between the eyes with his sword-butt and send her stumbling backward out of the creek.

Then he heard yelling, elated screams, and saw Luke racing toward the boundary line with the red team's banner lifted high. He was flanked by Travis and Connor Stoll, who was covering him now, and a few Apollo kids, who were fighting Beckendorf and his siblings. Ares' kids got up, and Clarisse muttered a dazed curse.

"A trick!" she shouted. "It was a trick."

They staggered after Luke, but it was too late. Everybody converge on the creek as Luke ran across into friendly territory. The blue team exploded into cheers. The red banner shimmered turned to silver. The boar and spear were replaced with a huge caduceus, the symbol of cabin eleven. Everybody on the blue team picked up Luke and started carrying him around on their shoulders. Chiron cantered out from the woods and blew the conch horn.

The game was over. Blue team won.

"Not bad hero," Annabeth's voice said next to Percy. "Where the heck did you learn to fight like that?" she asked. The air shimmered, and she materialized, holding a Yankees baseball cap as if she just took it off.

Instead of being shock, Percy was angry as he said, "You set me up. You put me here because you knew Clarisse would come after me, while you sent Luke around the flank. You had it all figured out."

"Well, credit goes to Naruto and his shadow clones helped us," Annabeth said, "Speaking of which, where is Naruto?"

"He never showed up!" Percy said.

"That's strange—" Annabeth said before there was a large yelped sound like a dog getting hurt.

Suddenly the huge massif dog jumped out of the woods, running around as if trying to shake off something on it.

Everyone stopped celebrating when they saw it, but not because of the huge dog, but rather what was on it—or rather who.

Naruto had manage to stay on the monster dog, although he wasn't able to remove his kunai knife or let go to reach for his sword in order to stab it. The weird part was that Naruto seem to be having fun time riding the crazed monster until they reach the campers.

"Get out of the way!" Naruto yelled.

Most did but many were knocked around by the monster but others were knocked aside by the beast.

Percy saw it coming at him and drew his sword only to get hit with full force that caused him to stumble out of the creek, loosing that sugar high energy he just had.

Fortunately Chiron got his quiver full of arrows and bow and shot the beast in the neck, missing Naruto by an inch.

Good news, the beast disintegrated into the shadows. Bad news for Naruto, he didn't get time to get off as he fell into the ground with an _oomph_.

 _"Di immortales!"_ Annabeth said, "That's a hellhound from the Fields of Punishment. They don't… they're not suppose to…"

"Someone summoned it," Chiron said. "Someone inside the camp."

Everyone turned to Naruto who got up and brushed the dirt off him like nothing happened.

"What?" Naruto asked.

"Naruto, why were you on the hellhound?" Annabeth asked.

"A wha—oh, you mean that massif dog?" Naruto asked, "I found it in the woods and tried to get a jump on it. Sadly it didn't go as well as I hoped. I probably should have tried the summoning jutsu."

That gained more suspicious and confused looks.

"Hold on a second!" Percy got up back in the creek, regaining his energy, "Naruto wouldn't do anything like that! He's innocent!"

Everyone turned to Percy and gasped.

"Oh styx," Annabeth said, "I assumed it would be Zeus. Not him."

Now Percy was really confused until he looked up and saw why everyone was shock. Right above his head, was a fading hologram of green light, and a spinning and gleaming three tipped spear: a trident.

"It is determined," Chiron announced.

All around Percy, campers started kneeling, even Ares cabin, though they didn't look happy about it. Only one who didn't was Naruto, who wasn't sure how to react to it.

"My father?" Percy asked, completely bewildered.

"Poseidon," said Chiron. "Earthshaker, Stormbringer, Father of Horses, Hail, Perseus Jackson, Son of the Sea God."

There was a moment of silence before Naruto said, "Well, that explains why water seem to help you."


	10. Percy Is Offered a Quest

**A/N:** Thanks for the support about my dad. He is fine, he just have multiple bone fractures that need time to heal.

I'm glad everyone was pleased with how I had Naruto ride the Hellhound in the last chapter. Too be honest, I was deciding whether to have Naruto kill it quickly or ride it toward the campers, and I figured if I had Naruto ride the hellhound it will create some foreshadowing.

* * *

 **Percy Is Offered a Quest**

…Olympus…

Zeus was in a foul mood. Poseidon broke his oath and had a son, and now Zeus is all but certain the child stole his symbol for his father, and that Poseidon was out to over throw him again.

It's not only just his nephew that was on Zeus' mind. It was the boy his daughter _and_ son both defied him to bring to this world. He was fully aware of what is sealed in the child. In fact he had to stop his own children from breaking ancient laws to bring the boy to their world from the day he was born.

Zeus was paranoid about the fox, that was for sure. If it wasn't for the fact that the beast itself was dangerous, it's how much dangerous the boy could be if he mastered the beast's power. If the boy learn how to master it's power, he could gain the power of the big three, if not even more powerful.

However before he can do anything about it, he needs to deal with the problems he has at hand, and something he will threaten war if it's not taken care of.

…

If there's one thing Naruto hate more than bullies, it's the cold stares. The day after the Hellhound incident, Naruto joined in with Hermes Cabin, noticing the loathing looks and the whispers didn't help

"He had to summon it, he said he could."

"That's probably why he tried to gain our trust." Another said.

"Yeah, to destroy us."

Only Chiron, Annabeth, Travis, Connor, Luke, Beckendorf, Percy, Katie, and Grover seemed to believe him when he explained what a summoning jutsu was and that he couldn't summon a hellhound. Clarisse seem to believe Naruto too, but she didn't say anything.

Unfortunately Percy had the worse luck after the game. From the moment he was claimed, the poor guy was immediately moved into Cabin Three and treated like he was a plague or something.

Annabeth and the rest of Naruto's aunts and uncles from Athena Cabin started treating Percy like he was their sworn rival or enemy due to the rivalry between Athena and Poseidon.

Unfortunately for Naruto, that made him the outcast of Cabin Six. Since Percy was one of the first friends he made in this world and the fact Percy stood up for him after the Hellhound was killed, Naruto wasn't about to let his grandmother's rivalry with Percy's dad end it.

Luckily for Percy, Grover and Luke seemed to keep their friendship with him as well. Luke even give Percy private sword lessons, although that's mostly because none of the other Hermes kids and unclaimed wanted to train with the guy who beaten three more Ares kids at once than Naruto.

The last thing they need is to have a horrible dream, which of course meant they had it.

Naruto and Percy was on a beach during a storm, only Naruto seemed to be observing things as Percy was trying to run along the beach in a storm. There was a city in the distant, but it wasn't New York.

 _Los Angeles,_ Naruto thought.

He had no clue how he knew it, but his senses told him he was right.

About a hundred yards down the surf, two men were fighting. They looked like TV wrestlers, muscular, with beard and long hair. Both wore flowing Greek tunics, one trimmed in blue, the other in green. They grappled with each other, wrestled, kicked and head-butted, and every time they connect, lightning flashed, the sky grew darker, and the wind rose.

Percy tried to run to them, but the wind blew him back, until he was running in place.

Naruto tried to run to his friend, but found himself unable to move.

Over the roar of the storm, they could hear the blue-robed one yelling at the green-robed one, _Give it back! Give it back!_ Like a kindergartner fighting over a toy.

The waves got bigger, crashing into the beach, spraying Percy and Naruto with salt.

Naruto struggled to help Percy but it felt as if he was under Shikamaru's Shadow Possession Jutsu.

 _Come down, little hero,_ the voice crooned to Percy. _Come down!_

The sand split beneath Percy, opening up a crevice straight down to the center of the earth. Percy's feet slipped, and darkness swallowed.

Naruto was freed but before he could go to his friend he sense something watching over him.

Naruto turned and saw a beautiful woman with long black hair and intenes gray wearing a silvery white women tunic under a complete set of armor.

 _Be wise of how you help your friend, Naruto,_ she said.

…

Naruto woke with a start in Cabin Six. Judging from the snoring from his cabin mates, Naruto guessed he was the only one awake, which isn't that uncommon. Naruto decided to get up dressed for another early morning training.

However, Naruto didn't get the chance as the moment he got out of the cabin, he saw Grover and Percy both leaving Cabin Three, and judging from Grover's worried look, it wasn't a good thing.

"Hey!" Naruto said running up to them.

"Oh, hey Naruto," Percy said.

"What's going on?" Naruto asked.

"Chiron has summoned Percy to the Big House," Grover said with a slight worried.

"Probably so Mr. D can kill me for existing," Percy muttered.

"But it's not Percy's fault that Poseidon broke his oath to have him, right?" Naruto asked.

"Maybe so, but Mr. D has bad history with children of Poseidon since Theseus," Grover said

"Why would—Oh right Ariadne," Naruto responded as he suddenly remembered the story of how Dionysus married Ariadne of Crete after she was abandoned by Theseus on an island. "I better go with you guys."

Percy had no clue what his blonde hair friend was going on about, but he was glad Naruto decided to stay with them. Grover wanted to protest since Chiron and Mr. D wanted only Percy, but he knew once Naruto make up his mind, there was no changing it because even if they leave Naruto, he would most likely sneak around to gather info himself.

Over Long Island Sound, the sky looked like ink soup coming to a boil. A hazy curtain of rain was coming in their direction.

"You think we need an umbrella?" Percy asked Grover.

"No," he replied. "It never rains here unless we want it to."

"I don't know," Naruto said looking at the sky, "It doesn't look like it's planning to pass around us."

Naruto wasn't the only one worried about the storm. At the volleyball pit, the kids from Apollo's cabin were playing a morning game against the satyrs, and in the strawberry fields Dionysus' twin son were walking around in the strawberry fields, making the plants grow, like normal business, but Naruto and Percy, they were eyeing the storm.

Grover Percy and Naruto walked up to the front porch of the Big House. Dionysus sat at the pinochle table in his tiger-striped Hawaiian shirt with his Diet Coke, just as he had on both of their first days. Chiron sat across the table in his magical wheelchair. They were playing against invisible opponents—two sets oo cards hovering in the air.

"Well, well," Mr. D said without looking up. "Our little celebrity. Come closer. And don't expect me to kowtow to you, mortal, just because old Barnacle-Beard is your father."

A net of lightning flashed across the clouds. Thunder shook the windows of the house.

"Blah, blah, blah," Dionysus said.

Chiron feigned interest in his pinochle cards. Grover cowered by the railing, his hooves clopping back and forth.

"If I had my way," Mr. D said, "I would cause your molecules to erupt in flames. We'd sweep up the ashes and be done with a lot of trouble. But Chiron seems to feel this would be against my mission at this cursed camp to keep you runts from harm."

"Spontaneous combustion _is_ a form of harm, Mr. D," Chiron put in.

"Nonsense," Dionysus said. "Boy wouldn't feel a thing. Nevertheless, I've agreed to restrain myself. I'm thinking of turning you into a dolphin instead, sending you back to your father."

"Mr. D—" Chiron said.

"Oh, all right," Dionysus relented. "There's one more option. But it's deadly and foolishness." Dionysus rose, and the invisible players' cards dropped to the table. "I'm off to Olympus for the emergency meeting. If the boy is still here when I get back, I'll turn him into an Atlantic bottlenose. Do you understand? And Perseus Jackson, if you're at all smart, you'll see that's a much better choice than what Chiron feels you must do."

Dionysus picked up a playing card, twisted it, and it became a plastic rectangle security pass.

He snapped his fingers and the air seemed to fold and bend around him. He became a hologram, then a wind, then he was gone, leaving only the smell of fresh-pressed grapes lingering behind.

"Well that was—weird," Naruto said.

Chiron gave them a tired and strained smile. "Sit, Percy, please. And you too Naruto and Grover."

They did.

Chiron laid his cards on the table, a winning hand he hadn't gotten to use.

"Tell me, Percy," he said. "What did you make of the hellhound?"

Percy blinked before answering, "At first I was scared until I noticed that it was trying to shake Naruto off it's back."

Naruto chuckled at the memory, "I think I scared it more than it scared everyone else."

"Yes, well, Percy will have to meet far worse before he's done," Chiron said.

Percy and Naruto looked at each other, both confused.

"Done… with what?" Percy asked.

"Your quest, of course. Will you accept it?"

Grover was crossed his fingers with hope.

"Um, sir," Naruto said, "You haven't told Percy what it is yet."

Chiron grimaced. "Well, that's the hard part, the details."

Thunder rumbled across the valley. The storm clouds had now reached the edge of the beach as the sky and sea were boiling together.

"Poseidon and Zeus," Percy said. "They're fighting over something valuable… something that was stolen, aren't they?"

Chiron and Grover exchange looks.

Chiron sat forward in his wheelchair. "How did you know that?"

"Well for one thing—" Naruto started off, "The sky and sea seem to have been fighting since Christmas."

Percy nodded. "Then I talked to Annabeth, and she'd overheard something about a theft. And… I've also been having these dreams."

Naruto fought the urge to say he has been too. Thankfully Grover interrupted by saying, "I knew it."

"Hush, satyr," Chiron ordered.

"But it is his quest!" Grover's eyes were bright with excitement. "It must be!"

"Only the Oracle can determine." Chiron stroke his bristly beard. "Nevertheless, Percy, you and Naruto are correct. Your father and Zeus are having their worst quarrel in centuries. They are fighting over something valuable that was stolen. To be precise: a lightning bolt."

Percy laughed nervously. "A _what_?"

Naruto whacked Percy in the back of the head. Clearly this wasn't a laughing matter.

"Do not take this lightly," Chiron warned. "I'm not talking about some tinfoil-covered zigzag you'd see in a second-grade play. I'm talking about a two-foot-long cylinder of high-grade celestial bronze, capped on both ends with god-level explosives."

"Oh."

"Zeus's master bolt," Chiron said, getting worked up now. "The symbol of his power, from which all other lightning bolts are patterned. The first weapon made by the Cyclopes for the war against the Titans, the bolt that sheered the top off Mount Etna and hurled Kronos from his throne; the master bolt, which packs enough power to make mortal hydrogen bombs look like firecrackers."

Naruto whistled in amazement before asking, "And it's missing?"

"Stolen," Chiron said.

"By who?" Percy asked.

"By _whom_ ," Chiron corrected. "By you."

Percy's mouth fell open.

"At least"—Chiron held up a hand—"that's what Zeus thinks. During the winter solstice, at the last council of the gods, Zeus and Poseidon had an argument. The usual nonsense: 'Mother Rhea always like you best,' 'Air disasters are more spectacular than sea disasters,' et cetera. Afterward, Zeus realized his master bolt was missing, taken from his throne room under his very nose. He immediately blamed Poseidon. Now, a god cannot usurp another god's symbol of power directly—that's forbidden by the most ancient of divine laws. But Zeus believes your father convinced a human hero to take it."

"But I didn't—"

"Patience and listen, child," Chiron said. "Zeus has a good reason to be suspicious. The forges of the Cyclopes are under the ocean, which gives Poseidon some influence over the makers of his brother's lightning. Zeus believes Poseidon has taken the master bolt, and is now secretly having the Cyclopes build an arsenal of illegal copies, which might be used to topple Zeus from his throne. The only thing Zeus wasn't sure about was which hero Poseidon used to steal the bolt. Now Poseidon has openly claimed you as his son. You were in New York over the winter holidays. You could easily have snuck into Olympus. Zeus believes he has found his thief."

"But I've never been to Olympus!" Percy argued.

"It's true. I was with him during the winter holidays, and we never been in the Empire State Building," Naruto said. "Not to mention we had _no_ clue where Olympus was much less knew it was real until Annabeth told us."

"Maybe so, but it wouldn't be the first time Poseidon tried to unseat Zeus," Chiron said.

"Wasn't that because Poseidon wanted Zeus to be a better leader?" Naruto asked.

"Yes, but Zeus didn't see it that way, and ever since then he never trusted his brother. Of course, Poseidon denies stealing the bolt. He took great offense at the accusation. The two having been arguing back and forth for months, threatening war. And now, you've come along—the proverbial last straw."

"But I'm just a kid!" Percy argued.

"Percy," Grover cut in, "if you were Zeus, and you already thought your brother was plotting to overthrow you, then your brother suddenly admitted he had broken the sacred oath he took after World War II, that he's fathered a new mortal hero who might be used as a weapon against you… Wouldn't that twist in your toga?"

"But I didn't do anything," Percy said, "Poseidon—my dad—he didn't really have this master bolt stolen, did he?"

Chiron sighed. "Most thinking observers would agree that thievery is not Poseidon's style. But the Sea God is too proud to try convincing Zeus of that. Zeus demanded that Poseidon returned the bolt by the summer solstice. That's June twenty-first, ten days from now. Poseidon wants an apology or being called a thief by the same date. I hoped that diplomacy might prevail, that Hera or Demeter or Hestia would make the two brothers see sense. But your arrival has inflamed Zeus' temper. Now neither god will back down. Unless someone intervenes, unless the master bolt is found and returned to Zeus before the solstice, there will be war. And do you know what a full-fledged war would look like, Percy?"

"Bad?" Percy guessed.

"Imagine the world in chaos. Nature at war with itself. Olympians forced to choose sides between Zeus and Poseidon. Destruction. Carnage. Millions dead. Western civilization turned into a battleground so big it will make the Trojan War look like a water balloon fight. And you, Percy Jackson, would be the first to feel Zeus' wrath."

"Dang," Naruto responded.

It started to rain. Volleyball players stopped their game and stared in stunned silence at the sky, and it didn't ease Percy's mood.

"So I have to find the stupid bolt," Percy said. "And return it to Zeus."

"What better peace offering," Chiron said, "than to have the son of Poseidon return Zeus' property?"

"If Poseidon doesn't have it, where is the thing?" Naruto asked.

"I believe I know." Chiron's expression was grim. "Part of a prophecy I had years ago… well, some of the lines make sense to me, now. But before I can say more, you must officially take up the quest. You must seek the counsel of the Oracle."

"Why can't you tell him where the bolt is beforehand?" Naruto asked.

"Because if I did, Percy would be too afraid to accept the challenge."

Percy swallowed. "Good reason."

"You agree then?"

Percy looked between Naruto and Grover. Naruto was concern, but Grover was nodding encouragingly.

"All right," Percy said. "It's better than being turned into a dolphin."

"Then it's time you consult the Oracle," Chiron said. "Go upstairs, Percy Jackson, to the attic. When you come back down, assuming you're still sane, we will talk more."

Percy reluctantly nodded and headed into the big house.

…

Its been five minutes since Percy had left to consult the oracle and he hasn't returned.

Naruto started polishing the bronze on his headband and sharpening his celestial bronze ninja weapons. One thing he learned in camp was how to clean and sharpened celestial bronze weapons so they will always be in top shape for the next monster they fight.

Naruto wasn't sure if he will be allowed on the quest, but he wanted to be ready just incase. The oddest part during the wait was that every once in a while Naruto would noticed the air behind Chiron shimmered.

Finally Percy came out and he looked as if he was hit by a truck.

"Well?" Chiron asked.

Percy slumped into a chair at the Pinochle table, "She said I would retrieve what was stolen."

Grover sat forward, chewing excitedly on the remains of a Diet Coke can Dionysus left. "That's great!"

"What did the Oracle say _exactly_?" Chiron pressed. "This is important."

Percy was rather reluctant as he spoke. "She… she said I would take three west, a friend's dangerous secret will be put at rest. the true enemy will be revealed, only with a friends help what was stolen be retrieved."

Naruto had a feeling that Percy was leaving out something. Chiron must have sensed the same thing because he asked, "Anything else?"

"No," Percy lied. "That's about it."

Naruto gave a look to Percy that said, _We'll discuss this water._

"Very well, Percy. But know this: the Oracle's words often have double meetings. Don't dwell on them too much. The truth is not always clear until events come to pass."

"Okay," Percy said, anxious to change the topics, "So where do I go? Who's the god in the west?"

"Ah, think, Percy," Chiron said. "If Zeus and Poseidon weaken each other in a war, who stands to gain?"

"Somebody else who wants to take over?" Percy guessed.

"Yes, quite. Someone who harbors a grudge, who has been unhappy with his lot since the world was divided eons ago, whose kingdom would grow powerful with the deaths of millions. Someone who hates his brothers for forcing him into an oath to have no more children, an oath that both of them have now broken."

Naruto's eyes widened. "Wait, you don't mean Hades, do you?"

Chiron nodded. "The Lord of the Dead is the only possibility."

Even Grover seemed scared by the possibility.

"A Fury came after Percy," Chiron reminded them, "She watched the young man until she was sure of his identity, then tried to kill him. Furies obey only one lord: Hades."

"Yeah, but—but Hades hates _all_ heroes," Grover protested. "Especially if he has found out Percy is a son of Poseidon…"

"A hellhound got into the forest," Chiron continued. "Those can only be summoned from the Fields of Punishment, and it had to be summoned by someone within the camp. Hades must have a spy here. He must suspect Poseidon will try to use Percy to clear his name. Hades would very much like to kill this young half-blood before he can take on the quest."

"Great," Percy muttered, "That's two major gods who want to kill me."

Naruto wasn't so convinced. It seemed to fishy. Sure, Chiron was right about the Fury being a servant of Hades, and the hellhound too. But he also remembered what Mrs. Dodds said when she was trying to kill them, or rather demanded. Mrs. Dodds was looking for something _not_ someone.

"But the quest to…" Grover swallowed. "I mean, couldn't the master bolt be in some place like Maine? Maine's very nice this year."

"Hades sent a minion to steal the master bolt," Chiron insisted. "He hid it in the Underworld, knowing full and well that Zeus would blame Poseidon. I don't pretend to understand the Lord of the Dead's motives perfectly, or why he chose this time to start a war, but one thing is certain. Percy must go to the Underworld, find the master bolt, and reveal the truth."

Percy seemed to be full of anticipation and desire for revenge, but at the same time hesitant at the idea of going up against a god.

Grover was trembling. He'd started eating pinochle cards like potato chips.

Naruto decided to speak up, going with their theory. "Look, if we know it's Hades, why can't we just tell the other gods? Maybe my grandmother will listen to reason if she knew that Zeus and Poseidon are being set up."

"Maybe so, Naruto, but suspecting and knowing are not the same thing," Chiron said. "Besides, even if the other gods suspected Hades—and I imagine some does—they couldn't retrieve the bolt themselves. Gods cannot cross each other's territories except by invitation. That is another ancient rule. Heroes, on other hand, have certain privileges. They can go anywhere, challenge anyone, as long as they're bold enough to do it. No god can be held responsible for a hero's actions. Why do you think the gods always operate through humans?"

"You're saying I'm being used," Percy said.

"I'm saying it was no accident Poseidon claimed you now. It's a very risky gamble, but he's in a desperate situation. He needs you."

Percy seemed to be mixed with resentful grateful happy and angry all at once.

Naruto turned to Chiron. "You've known Percy was Poseidon's son all along, haven't you?"

"I had my suspicions. As I said, Naruto… I've spoken to the Oracle, too."

"So let me get this straight," Percy said. "I'm supposed go to the Underworld and confront the Lord of the Dead, find the most powerful weapon in the universe, and get it back to Olympus before the summer solstice, in ten days."

"That's about right," Chiron agreed.

"Did I mention that Maine is very nice this time of year?" Grover asked weakly after eating the ace of hearts.

"You don't have to go," Percy told him. "I can't ask that of you."

"Oh…" He shifted his hooves. "No… it's just that satyrs and underground places… well…"

He took a deep breath, then stood, brushing the shredded cards and aluminum bits off his T-shirt. "You saved my life, Percy. You and Naruto both did. If… if you're serious about wanting me along, I won't let you down."

"Me too," Naruto said. "After all, I do have experience with missions from back in the Elemental Nations that has proven to be resourceful against the monsters in this world."

Chiron nodded in approval.

"Thanks guys," Percy said. "So where do we go? The Oracle just said to go west."

"The entrance to the Underworld is always in the west. It moves from age to age, just like Olympus. Right now, of course it's in America."

"Where?" Percy asked.

Chiron looked surprised "I thought that it would be obvious enough."

"Um Chiron, up until over a week ago, Percy didn't know the gods were real and he never left the state of New York," Naruto reminded him.

"Oh, right," Chiron said forgetting about it. "Well, the entrance to the Underworld is in Los Angeles."

"Naturally," Percy said, "So we just get on a plane—"

"No!" Grover shrieked. "Percy, what are you thinking? Have you ever been on a plane in your life?"

Percy shook his head.

"Percy, think," Chiron said. "You are the son of the Sea God. Your father's bitterest rival is Zeus, Lord of the Sky. Your mother knew better than to trust you in an airplane. You would be in Zeus' domain. You would never come down again alive."

Overhead, lightning crackled. Thunder boomed.

"Okay," Percy said trying not to look at the storm, "So, I'll travel overland."

"That's right," Chiron said. "Also, under normal circumstances I will only allow Naruto and Grover go with you, but since the Oracle prophesized it, you must have a third companion in this quest. Fortunately, someone has already volunteered, if you will accept her help."

"Gee," Percy said, feigning surprise. "Who else would be stupid enough to volunteer for a quest like this?"

The air shimmered behind Chiron once again.

Annabeth became visible, stuffing her Yankees cap into her back pocket.

"I've been waiting a long time for a quest, seaweed brain," she said, "Athena is no fan of Poseidon, but if you're going to save the world, I'm the best person to help keep you from messing up."

"What am I? Chop liver?" Naruto asked.

"If you do say so yourself," Percy said. "I suppose you have a plan, wise girl?"

Her cheeks colored. "Do you want my help or not?"

"Ninjas in the Elemental Nations normally go on quest of three or four," Naruto stated.

"Fine," Percy said, "Four will work."

"Excellent," Chiron said. "This afternoon, we can take you four as far as the bus terminal in Manhattan. After that, you're on your own."

Lightning flashed. Rain poured down on the meadow that were never supposed to have violent weather.

"No time to waste," Chiron said, "I think you should all get packing."

 _"And then off to get Zeus Toy of mast destruction,"_ Naruto thought.


	11. Furies on the Bus

**Furies on the Bus**

Good thing Naruto grabbed his bag before the Minotaur destroyed Gabe's car and that he keeps most of them in his storage seal scrolls, because he only had to go to the camp store to get the demigod essentials he didn't have as well as some extra camping gear, just in case.

Naruto decided that since he was going back to the mortal world, he might as well dressed like a regular mortal. He wore a silvery white t-shirt under a blue denim jacket, gray-blue cargo pants with multiple side pockets to hide his seals, a pair of track t-shirts and his pouch attach to his belt and his headband around his forehead. Naruto also wore his leather necklace and his first Hokage necklace.

He still had the money he got from his grandparents, so he didn't need to borrow any from the camp store. But he did get twenty golden drachmas—coins the size of Girl Scout cookies and had images of various Greek gods stamped on one side and the Empire State Building on the other. Chiron told them it could come in handy or non-mortal transactions. He also gave him Annabeth and Percy each a canteen of nectar and a Ziploc bag full of ambrosia squares, to be used for emergencies, if they were seriously hurt. It was god food and it would cure them of almost any injury, but too much of it can make a half-blood feverish, and an overdose can burn up a half-blood.

Annabeth was bringing her magic Yankees cap, which was a twelfth birthday present rom her mom; a book on famous classical architecture, written in ancient Greek, to read when she got bored; and a long bronze knife hidden in her shirt sleeve.

Grover wore his fake feet and his pants to pass as human. He wore a green rasta-style cap, because when it rained his curly hair flattened and you could just see the tips of his horns. His bright orange backpack was full of scrap metal and apples to snack on. In his pocket was a set of reed pipes his daddy goat had carved for him. Grover only knew two songs on the reed pipes, and neither sound good.

Percy had a borrowed backpack full of the usual demigod essentials and one set of spare clothes that he arrived in since his luggage _was_ destroyed along with Gabe's Car.

They waved good-bye to the other campers, took one last look at the strawberry fields, the ocean, and the Big House, then hiked up Half-Blood Hill to the tall pine tree that used to be Thalia, daughter of Zeus.

Chiron was waiting for them in his wheelchair. Next to him was a guy in a chauffer's uniform, that Grover told Percy and Naruto was the camp's head of security. He supposedly had eyes all over his body so he could never be surprise, but you could only see them on his hands and neck.

"This is Argus," Chiron told Percy and Naruto. "He will drive you into the city, and, er, well, keep an eye on things."

"Bad pun Chiron," Naruto responded.

Luke came running up the hill, carrying a pair of basketball shoes.

"Hey!" he panted. "Glad I caught you."

Annabeth blushed, the way she always did when Luke was around.

"Just want to say good luck," Luke told Percy, "And I thought… um, maybe you could use these."

He handed Percy the pair of sneakers, which looked pretty normal. They even smelled kind of normal.

Luke said, _"Maia!"_

White bird wings sprouted out of the heels, startling Percy so much, he dropped them. The shoes flapped around until the wings folded up and disappeared.

"Awesome!" Grover said.

Luke smiled. "Those served me well when I was on my quest. Gift from Dad. I would give you the pair Naruto, but I figured with your ninja skills, you wouldn't have much use for them anyways."

"It's okay, Luke," Naruto said.

"Listen, Percy…" Luke looked uncomfortable. "A lot of hopes are riding on you. So just… ill some monsters for me, okay?"

Luke shook Percy's hand, patted Naruto on the shoulder, patted Grover on the head between the horns, then gave a goodbye hug to Annabeth, wo looked like she might pass out.

After Luke was gone, Percy told her, "You're hyperventilating."

"Am not."

"You let him capture the flag instead of you, didn't you?"

"Oh… why do I want to go anywhere with you, Percy?"

She stomped down the hill, where a white SUV waited on the shoulder of the road. Argus followed her, jingling his car keys.

Percy picked up the flying shoes and turned to Chiron. "I won't be able to use these, will I?"

He shook his head. "Luke meant well, Percy. But taking to the air… that would not be wise for you.

Percy nodded and turned to Naruto, "How about you, Naruto? Want to give your grandfather's winged shoes a shot."

"As tempting as it is, I think Luke is right. I can already climb up walls and leap tree to tree, I won't have much use for it," Naruto responded.

Percy nodded and turned to Grover. "What about you G-Man? You want a magical item?"

His eyes lit up. "Me?"

Pretty soon they'd laced the sneakers over his fake feet, and the world's first flying goat boy was ready for launch.

 _"Maia!"_ he shouted.

He got off the ground okay, but then fell over sideways so his backpack dragged through the grass. The winged shoes kept bucking up and down like tiny broncos.

"Practice," Chiron called after him. "You just need practice!"

"Aaaaa!" Grover went flying sideways down the hill like a possessed lawn mower, heading toward the van.

"I should have trained you better, Percy," Chiron said. "If only I had more time. Hercules, Jason—they all got more training."

"It's okay. I just wish—"

Naruto knew what was on Percy's mind, he was the only one amongst them that didn't have some kind of magical item or weapon he could use.

"What am I thinking?" Chiron cried. "I can't let you two get away without these."

He pulled out two pens from his coat pocket and handed each one to Naruto and Percy. Percy's was an ordinary disposable cap on pen while Naruto's was a bit longer with a button on the end that if you click it, the pen part comes out.

What got Naruto's attention was what was on the clip of his pen. It was small but it was red circle with a spiral on it, like the one on his old jumpsuit and on the ninja vest Chuunin and Jonin worn.

Naruto also remembered seeing it on the sword he used on the Fury. Naruto pushed the button. When he did, it expanded into a six feet long single edge celestial bronze blade with a leather grip long enough for Naruto to hold with both hands, and at the end was the spiral circle.

"Whoa!" Percy said. "I wonder—"

Percy uncapped his pen and the pen grew longer and heavier in his hand. In a half a second, he was holding a shimmering bronze sword with a double edged blade, a leather-wrapped grip, and a flat hilt riveted with gold studs. It was the first weapon that felt right in his hands.

"Percy, your sword is a gift from your father. I kept it for years, not knowing you were who I was waiting for. But the prophecy is clear to me now. You are the one. But beware. The sword has a long tragic history that we need not go into," Chiron told him, "It's name is Anaklusmos."

"Riptide," Percy translated.

"Naruto, your grandfather gave me that sword. He said it was a family heirloom of a clan in the elemental Nations and when the time comes it should go to you," Chiron said. "The sword is known as the Katana, a single edge blade sword unlike most swords we have, but from what I been told, it's best used by both hands. It's name in Greek is _Megáli_ _̱ kataig_ _ída din_ _ó_ _̱n_ but it has a shorter name in a language of your world _Uzushio no Ōarashi_."

"Great Storm of Whirlpools," Naruto translated as he gripped Uzuhio no Ōarashi with both hands. When he did, the sword felt more right in his hands, like he could slice through almost any monster with it.

"Use these only for emergencies," Chiron said, "and only against monsters. No hero should harm mortals unless absolutely necessary, of course, but these swords wouldn't harm them in any case."

"What do you mean it wouldn't harm mortals?" Percy asked, "How could it not?"

"The swords are celestial bronze. Forged by the Cyclopes, tempered in the heart of Mount Etna, cooled in the River Lethe. It's deadly to monsters, to any creature from the Underworld, provided they don't kill you first. But the blade will pass through mortals like an illusion. They simply are not important enough for the blades to kill. And I should warn both of you: as a demigod, you two can be killed by either celestial or normal weapons. You two are twice as vulnerable."

"Wait, how does such weapons ended up in the Elemental Nations?" Naruto asked. "I grew up in the leaf and I never seen any celestial bronze weapon."

"That I don't know. Hermes wasn't clear about the origins just that it's your birthright to wield it," Chiron said.

"Great," Naruto muttered.

"Now, Percy, recap your pen, and Naruto, hit the end of your hilt with the palm of your hand—without hurting yourself."

Percy touched the pen cap t the sword tip and Naruto hit the hilt of his sword with his other hand as if trying to play rock paper scissor with the sword. When they did Riptide and Uzushio no Ōarashi shrunk down to their pen forms.

"One last thing, neither of you could lose your swords in either sword nor pen form," Chiron said. "They're enchanted to reappear in your pocket after you lose them—or in your case, Naruto, it might return to your pouch if you keep it in there, but it might take some time, so I suggest you don't lose it in battle."

"Cool," Naruto responded as he put his pen in his pouch.

"But what if a mortal sees us pulling out a sword, or question about Naruto's headband?" Percy asked.

Chiron smiled. "Mist is a powerful thing, Percy."

"Mist?"

"Yes. Read _The Iliad_. It's full of references to the stuff. Whenever divine or monstrous elements mix with mortal world, they generate Mist, which obscures the vision of humans. You will see things just as they are, being a half-blood, but humans will interpret things quite differently. Remarkable, really, the lengths to which humans will go to fit things into their version of reality."

Percy put Riptide in his pocket, feeling for the first time that the quest was real.

"Chiron…" he said. "When you say the gods are immortal… I mean, there was a time _before_ them, right?"

"Four ages to be actually. The Time of the Titans was the Fourth Age, sometimes called the Golden Age, which is definitely a misnomer. This, the time of Western civilization and the rule of Zeus, is the Fifth Age."

"So what was it like… before the gods?"

Chiron pursed his lips. "Even I am not old enough to remember that, child, but I know it was a time of darkness and savagery for mortals. Kronos, the lord of the Titans, called his reign the Golden Age because men lived innocent and free for all knowledge. But that was mere propaganda. The Titan king cared nothing for your kind except as appetizers or a source of cheap entertainment It was only in the early reign of Lord Zeus, when Prometheus the good Titan brought fire to mankind, that your species began to progress, and even then Prometheus was branded a radical thinker. Zeus punished him severely, as you may recall. Of course, eventually the gods warmed to humans, and Western Civilization was born."

"Did Prometheus did the same for the elemental nations?" Naruto asked.

"No, surprisingly." Chiron said, "I would think Prometheus had plans too for your world, but from what I been told, Naruto, around the time Prometheus provided fire to mortals of this world, a powerful mortal in your world has already taught mortals of the elemental nations how to use Charka."

"Who?" Naruto asked.

"I'm not sure of his name, but I do know he is consider a man of legends and myths in your world, much as the Olympians are to mortals in this world," Chiron said, "Now, keep a clear head, Percy, and remember, you may be about to prevent the biggest war in human history."

"Relax," Percy said, "I'm very relax.

Percy headed down and Naruto was about follow but Chiron stopped him.

"Naruto, I didn't want to say this in front of the others in case I might discourage them, but can you please look after them?" Chiron asked, "Percy is too inexperience, and Annabeth might take things too personally do to her past. Grover is a good Satyr, but I'm afraid he might let his past cloud his judgement as well, and right now, you're the most experience demigod on this quest."

Naruto smiled as Chiron reminded him of Iruka. "I promise I'll keep them together."

Naruto headed down to meet his friends.

…

Argus drove the group out of the countryside and into western Long Island. Naruto got shotgun while Percy Annabeth and Grover sat in the back.

"So far so good," Percy told Annabeth. "Ten miles and not a single monster."

Annabeth gave him an irritated look. "It's bad luck to talk that way, seaweed brain."

"Remind me again—why do you hate me so much?"

"I don't hate you."

"Could've fooled me."

She folded her cap of invisibility. "Look… we're just not supposed to get along, okay? Our parents are rivals."

"But Naruto is Athena's grandson and we got along," Percy stated.

"Best friends in fact," Naruto responded.

"Forget it!" Annabeth said.

Argus smiled as he listened to the whole argument.

Traffic slowed down in Queens. By the time they got into Manhattan it was sunset and starting to rain.

Argus dropped them off at Greyhound Station on the Upper East Side, not far from the Jackson family apartment.

Naruto noticed a soggy flyer on the mail box with a picture of him and Percy on it: HAVE YOU SEEN THESE BOYS?

Argus unloaded their bags and made sure they got their bus tickets, then drove away, the eye on the back of his hand opening to watch them as he pulled out of the parking lot.

While waiting, it started to rain and Naruto decided to go to a nearby toy store to find something for him to buy time while they were waiting.

Inside Naruto looked around until he found himself in a beanie-plush toy section and right there on the shelf in front of Naruto was a lightning shape plush. Curious Naruto picked it up and the toy made a zapping noise.

"Oh man, this is too good to pass on," Naruto said he took it too the counter to buy along with a few other things that caught Naruto's attention.

It ended up being a good thing because outside Annabeth Percy and Grover had decided to play hacky-sack with one of Grover's apples and Percy kicked the apple too close to Grover's mouth. Grover took a huge goat bite and ate the apple whole: stem and core combine.

Grover tried to apologize but Percy and Annabeth were too busy laughing. Even Naruto cracked up at the sight.

"Hey guys, unless you want to lose another apple, how about we play with an actual hacky sack," Naruto said taking out the sack he bought.

No argued and they were able to restart their game, this time making sure no one passed the sack to close to Grover's mouth. Although Annabeth might have been the best in the previous game, Naruto had her beat.

Finally the bus came and the game ended. As they stood in line to board, Grover started looking around, sniffing the air like he smelled enchiladas.

"What is it?" Percy asked.

"I don't know," he said tensely. "Maybe it's nothing."

Naruto wasn't so convince. He reach into his pouch and took out Uzushio no Ōarashi and started twiddling it in his fingers.

They finally got on board and found seats together in the back of the bus. Grover, Annabeth, and Percy stowed their backpacks, but since Naruto's backpack is mostly full of scrolls that has storage seals for his stuff, it didn't bother him to keep on his back. Naruto wasn't the only one fiddling with his magical item. Annabeth kept slapping her Yankees cap nervously against her thigh.

Naruto saw something that made his stomach churned.

An old lady had just boarded the bus. She wore a crumpled velvet dress, laced gloves, and a shapeless orange-knit hat that shadow her face, and she carried a big paisley purse. When she tilted her head up, her black eyes glittered.

It was Mrs. Dodds, but in a different form.

Annabeth must have recognized her as well because she clamped Percy's knee and when he looked he paled and scrunch down in his seat.

Behind Mrs. Dodds came two more old ladies: one in a green hat, one in a purple hat. Other than the hats, they all looked the same.

Naruto remembered from Chiron's Latin Class that there were three furies total, and he would bet his headband that the Green hat and purple hat ladies were the other two furies.

They sat in the front row, right behind the driver. The two in the aisle crossed their legs over the walkway, making an X. It was casual enough, but it sent a clear message: nobody leaves.

The bus pulled out of the station, and they headed through a slick streets of Manhattan.

"She didn't stay dead long," Naruto muttered.

"I thought you said they could be dispelled for a life time," Percy told Annabeth.

"I said if you're _lucky_ ," Annabeth said. "You're obviously not."

"All three of them," Grover whimpered. _"Di immortales!"_

"It's okay," Annabeth said, obviously thinking hard. "The Furies. The three worst monsters from the Underworld. No problem. No problem. We'll just slipped out the windows."

"They don't open," Grover moaned.

"A back exit?" she suggest.

"There isn't any," Naruto said as the bus pulled onto Ninth Avenue, heading for the Lincoln Tunnel.

"They won't attack us with witnesses around," Percy said. "Will they?"

"Most mortals don't have good eyes," Annabeth reminded him. "Their brains can only process what they see through the Mist."

"They'll see three old ladies killing us, won't they?"

"Hard to say. But we can't count on mortals for help. Maybe an emergency exit in the roof…?"

They hit the Lincoln Tunnel, and the bus went dark except for the running lights down the aisle. It was eerily quiet without the sound of rain.

Mrs. Dodds got up. In a flat voice, as if she rehearsed it, she announced to the whole bus: "I need to use the rest-room."

"So do I," said the second sister.

"So do I," said the third sister.

They all started coming down the aisle.

"I've got it," Annabeth said. "Percy, take my hat."

"What?"

"You're the only one they want. Turn invisible and go up the aisle. Let them pass you. Maybe you can get to the front and get away."

"But you guys—"

"There's an outside chance they might notice us," Annabeth said. "You're a son of one of the Big Three Your smell might be overpowering."

"He won't go with the plan," Naruto said. "Not when our lives are in danger."

Naruto looked at the driver at the bus and got an idea. "But I have another plan."

Naruto whispered it to his friends. Percy nodded to the idea. Annabeth reluctantly went with it as it was a modified version of hers.

Percy took the cap and put it on and turned invisible.

It was then that the Furies made their way to them. When they did, their forms began to change until they all looked just like Mrs. Dodds did back in the museum with black coal eyes, sharp teeth and leathery like wings. What was worse was that their handbacks were now whips made out of fire. It was obvious that the Furies knew Annabeth Grover and Naruto were traveling with Percy.

Annabeth drew out her dagger while Grover armed himself with tin cans and Naruto was about to unleash Uzushio no Ōarashi's true form.

Just when the furies were about to lunge at the three, the bus suddenly swerved, causing the three furies to smack into the side of the bus. It also cause everyone else to do the same, except for Naruto who used chakra to stay in one place.

Naruto pressed the button and Uzushio no Ōarashi extended into a six foot long Katana.

With another Hard left and right the furies was swung around Naruto moved in on the first fury and swung his Katana clean through the unguarded Fury causing it to turn into monster dust.

That's one down.

However, before Naruto could make another swing at the Fury, the bus went into a 180 spin before stopping. Naruto had to jumped of the passengers' way as they headed to the bus door to escape, which unfortunately gave the remaining two furies time to recover.

Unfortunately, Percy, who's only job was to use the bus to throw off the Furies, decided to take off the Yankees cap and yell, "Hey!" which of course draw the Furies attention.

Naruto dug his katanna into a seat made a series of hand signs. "Wind Style Double Air Bullet Jutsu!"

Naruto took a deep breath and fired not one but two balls of heavily condense air.

The two air bullets hit the Furies slamming them into the front of the bus.

"Annabeth, Grover, take care the one of the left. Percy, if you want to fight, help me with the one on the right!" Naruto ordered.

They got over their shock and agree to the plan. Percy uncapped Riptide and Naruto grabbed his Katana and they came at one fury from both ends who responded by sending her fiery whip everywhere while Annabeth and Grover handle the other oen.

The Fury Percy and Naruto was fighting manage to hit Percy since Naruto was too fast for her, but Naruto kicked her in the back so hard it send her into the floor again.

"You won't succeed," she screeched out with her tongue flicking all over the place. Her talons started coming at Naruto who deflected them with his Katana. However, he didn't see the whip coming at him until it was wrapped around his leg and Naruto yelped, "Hot! Hot! Hot!"

Fortunately Percy came to his aid and cut through the Fury with his sword.

Meanwhile Annabeth seem to have took a bit of Naruto's plan to kill the Hellhound back at camp by jumping on the back of the Fury and was now having a bit of a piggy back ride as Grover threw tin cans.

The Fury manage to yell that Zeus will destroy them before Annabeth manage to drive her dagger into its neck. The Fury stopped moving before it broke into golden dust and Annabeth landed on her feet.

Celebrations were cut short when they heard rumble of thunder above them.

"Get out!" Annabeth yelled. "Now!"

They rushed outside and found the other passengers wandering around in a daze, arguing with the driver, or running around in circles yelling, "We're going to die!" A Hawaiian shirted tourist with a camera snapped Percy's and Naruto's photo before before they could cap and transform their swords back into their pen forms.

"Our bags!" Grover realized when he noticed he Annabeth and Percy were the only ones without them, "We left our—"

BOOOOOM!

The windows of the bus exploded as the passengers ran for cover. Lightning shredded a huge crater in the roof.

"We better get out of here," Naruto said, shouldering his backpack.

No one argued as they plunged into the woods as rain poured down, the bus in flames behind them, and nothing but darkness ahead.

* * *

 **A/N:** I been getting questions about the Six Paths Sage, and I decided to include him in the story. As for if Naruto is still the reincarnation of the Six Paths Sage's or if he will be a demigod or not... you'll have to wait to find out.

Also, I used the Whirlpool translation in Naruto's sword because of his mother's clan's name as well as crest since the crest does look like a whirlpool it's supposed to be. I'll go into details about the Katana's past later on.


	12. Shinobi Headbands Do Have Uses

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next two chapters there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

* * *

 **Shinobi Headbands Do Have Uses**

There are a few rules of being the shinobi Naruto was able to remember—mostly because Kakashi wouldn't let him forget it—one: always be prepare for anything, two: never go anywhere during a dangerous mission without your gear as it could cost you your life, and three: it never hurts to pack extra supplies in case you need to support your teammates.

However, Naruto never expected that he would be using his extra supplies so soon during the quest, but at least his friends were glad he came prepared.

Now Naruto Annabeth Grover and Percy were walking through the woods along the New Jersey riverbank, the glow of New York City making the night sky yellow behind them, and the smell of the Hudson river reeking in their nose.

Grover was shivering and braying, his big goat eyes turned slit-pupiled and full of terror. "Three Kindly Ones. All three at once."

"Come on! The farther away we get, the better," Annabeth said.

"There's a road a mile from here," Naruto muttered.

Percy stared at Naruto. "How do you know that?"

Naruto shrugged. "I don't know. I just do."

"It's a power of Hermes," Annabeth explained. "Remember? He's the god of travelers and patron of anyone that uses roads. It must be kicking in for Naruto."

"So what? Naruto is a natural GPS?" Percy asked.

"Not exactly," Annabeth said. "On land, yes, mostly on roads and paths. But other than that, his navigational skills should be the same as it is as he is in the air or water."

"So how are we going to go west?" Percy asked. "I doubt Naruto can support all of us on the way to LA."

"Well maybe if we went by my plan in the first place, we might still have our supplies."

"You realize you're talking about Naruto's plan, right?"

Annabeth sighed. Naruto sense a bit of a pride issue with Annabeth.

They sloshed across mushy ground, through nasty twisted trees that smelled like sour laundry.

After a few minutes Annabeth fell into line next to Percy. "Look, I…" Her voice faltered. "I appreciate what you did, okay? That was really brave."

"We're a team, right?" Percy asked.

She was silent for a few more steps. "It's just that if you died… aside from the fact that it would really suck for you, it would mean the quest was over. This may be my only chance to see the real world."

The Thunderstorm had finally let up. The city glowed faded behind them, leaving the group in almost total darkness, and yet Naruto still seem to know his way to the road so they continued following him.

"You haven't left Camp Half-Blood since you were seven?" Percy asked her.

"No… only short field trips. My dad—"

"The history professor."

"Yeah. It didn't work out for me living at home. I mean, Camp Half-Blood _is_ my home." She was rushing her words out now, as if somebody might try to stop her. "At camp you train and train. And that's all cool and everything, but the real world is where the monsters are. That's where you learn whether you're any good or not."

There was a slight sound of doubt in her voice when she said that.

"You're pretty good with that knife," Percy said.

"You think so?"

"Anybody who can piggyback ride a monster—even a Fury—is okay by me.

Naruto smiled as it seems that his best friend and aunt finally seemed to finally get along. Even before Percy was claimed it seemed that they could hardly get along without some kind of argument.

"You know," she said, "maybe I should tell you… Something funny back on the bus…"

However she was interrupted when Naruto stopped causing Grover to run into him and Annabeth and Percy to run into him.

During their conversation they had somehow made it to a deserted two-lane road through the trees that Percy guessed was the road Naruto was talking about. To top that off, there was the smell of food. Fried, greasy food.

Across the road was a closed down gas station with tattered billboard for a 1990s movie, and one open roadside curio shops that sell lawn flamingos and wooden Indian and cemented grizzly bears and other stuff, and a bright neon light sign. The main building was a long, low warehouse surrounded by acres of statuary. The Neon sign above the gate was impossible for Percy Annabeth and Naruto to read because it was in red cursive neon writing.

"What the heck does that say?" Percy asked.

"I don't know," Annabeth replied.

"Beats me," Naruto responded.

Grover translated: "Aunty Em's Garden Gnome Emporium."

Flanking the entrance, as advertised, were two cement garden gnomes, ugly bearded little runts, smiling and waving, as if they were about to get their picture taken.

"Am I the only one creeped out by that," Naruto said.

"They're just garden gnomes," Percy said as he crossed the street.

"Hey…" Grover warned.

"The lights are on inside," Annabeth said. "Maybe it's open."

"Snack bar," Percy said wistfully.

"Snack bar," she agreed.

"Are you two crazy?" Grover said. "This place is weird."

They of course ignored him.

The front lot was a forest of statues: cement animals, cement children, even a cement satyr playing the pipes, which gave Grover the creeps.

 _"Bla-ha-ha!"_ he bleated. "Looks like my Uncle Ferdinand!"

Naruto started getting a shiver down his back as he had a strong sense of danger. He was debating whether or not to take out Uzushio no Ōarashi or wait.

Instead Naruto went for the next best thing, he took out a celestial bronze kunai knife and Shurikan and hid them under his sleeve like Annabeth hid her dagger since it was easier to conceal a kunai knife than it was to conceal a katana.

They stopped at the warehouse door.

"Don't knock," Grover pleaded. "I smell monsters."

"Your nose is clogged up from the Furies, "Annabeth told him, "All I smell is burgers. Aren't you hungry?"

"Meat!" he said scornfully. "I'm a vegetarian."

"You eat cheese enchiladas and aluminum cans," Percy reminded him.

"Those or vegetables."

"Personally, I prefer ramen," Naruto responded, "Come on, guys, Grover's right, something about this place feels wrong."

Then the door creaked open, and standing in front of them was a tall woman that was dressed in a long black gown that covered everything but her hands and her head was completely veiled like a Middle Eastern Woman. Her eyes glinted behind a curtain of black gauze, but they couldn't see her eyes. Her coffee-colored hands looked old, but well-manicured and elegant.

She spoke in a vague Middle Easter accent, "Children, it is too late to be out all alone. Where are your parents?"

"They're… um…." Annabeth started to say.

"We're orphans," Percy said.

"Orphans," the woman said. "But, my dears! Surely not!"

"We got separated from our caravan," Percy said, "Our circus caravan. The ringmaster told us to meet him at the gas station if we got lost, but he may have forgotten, or maybe he meant a different gas station. Anyway, we're lost. Is that food I smell?"

Despite the sense of danger, Naruto had to fight off the urge to laugh. That was the most pathetic excuse of a lie he heard since Grover tried to go along with the Mrs. Kerr lie.

"OH, my dears," the woman said. "You must come in, poor children. I am Aunty Em. Go straight through the back of the warehouse, please. There is a dining area."

They thanked her and went inside.

Annabeth muttered to Percy, "Circus Caravan?"

"Always have a strategy, right?"

"Your head is full of kelp."

The warehouse was filed with more statue—people in all different poses, wearing all different expressions on their faces, and all were life size, and all looked life like, like they were once alive before they were a statue. However Percy and even Annabeth were acting like Choji waiting for barbeque, except maybe not as aggressive.

Naruto wouldn't blame them. Something about this place felt welcoming while at the same time had the aura of danger. Not to mention the smell of greasy food that would be overwhelming to mortals.

Aunty Em took them to the back of the warehouse, a fast-food counter with a grill, a soda fountain, a pretzel heater, and a nacho cheese dispenser.

 _All they're missing is an all-you-can-eat-cook-it-yourself barbeque and the Akamichi Clan probably feel at home here,_ Naruto thought.

"Please, sit down," Aunty Em said.

"Awesome," Percy said.

"Um," Grover said trying to come up with the lie. "We don't have any money."

Before Percy could respond, Aunty Em said, "No, no, children. No money. This is a special case, yes? It is my treat, for such nice orphans."

"Thank you, ma'am," Annabeth said.

Aunty Em stiffened as if Annabeth had done something wrong, but then relaxed.

"Quite all right, Annabeth," she said. "You have such beautiful eyes, child."

"You wouldn't have some Ramen here, would you?" Naruto asked trying not to sound suspicious.

Once again, Aunty Em stiffened when Naruto asked that, and it took her longer to relax. "Sorry, Naruto. I don't serve Ramen, but I do make the best fried food if I say so myself."

Naruto quirked an eyebrow. He didn't remember telling her his name. In fact, he don't think Annabeth told Aunty Em hers. None of them did. And why did she stiffened like that when he and Annabeth talked.

Aunty Em disappeared behind the snack counter and started cooking. Before they know it, she'd brought them plastic trays heaped with double cheeseburgers, vanilla shakes, and XXL servings of French fries.

Percy chowed down the burger while Annabeth slurped her shake, but Naruto and Grover were hesitant.

"What's that hissing noise?" Grover asked.

Naruto listened and did in fact hear a faint yet familiar hissing sound. It sounded like something he heard before, but he couldn't remember what.

"Hissing?" Aunty Em asked. "Perhaps you hear the deep-fryer oil. You have keen ears, Grover."

"I take vitamins. For my ears."

Naruto knew better, or at least he think he does.

"That's admirable," she said. "But please, relax. You too Naruto. You should try to eat something."

Reluctantly Naruto took a cheeseburger and ate it carefully.

"So, you sell gnomes?" Percy said, trying to sound interested.

"Oh, yes," Aunty Em said. "And animals. And people. Anything for the garden. Custom orders. Statuary is very popular, you know."

"A lot of business on this road?"

"Not so much, no. Since the highway was built… most cars, they do not go this way now. I must cherish every customer I get."

 _I bet_ , Naruto thought. He looked and saw that many of the statues had scared expressions, like they were frightened.

"Ah," Aunty Em said sadly. "You notice some of my creations do not turn out well. They are marred. They do not sell. The face is the hardest to get right. Always the face."

"You make these statues yourself?" Naruto asked.

"Oh, yes. Once upon a time, I had two sisters to help me in business, but they have passed on, and Aunty Em is alone. I have only my statues. This is why I make them, you see. They are my company."

There was sadness in her voice that almost made Naruto felt pity until Annabeth stopped eating, sat forward and said, "Two sisters?"

"It's a terrible story," Aunty Em said. "Not one for children, really. You see, Annabeth, a bad woman was jealous of me, long ago, when I was young. I had a… a boyfriend, you know, this bad woman was determined to break us apart. She caused a terrible accident. My sisters stayed by me. They shared my bad fortune as long as they could, but eventually they passed on. They faded away. I alone have survived, but at a price. Such a price."

That's when Naruto realized who Aunty Em really was, and why there was a strong sense of danger in the air.

At this point, only Percy was showing sympathy.

"Percy?" Annabeth was shaking him to get his attention. "Maybe we should go. I mean, the ringmaster will be waiting."

"Yeah," Naruto agreed, "Especially since I'm his star young acrobat."

Grover was eating the waxed paper off the tray now.

"Such beautiful gray eyes, Annabeth. Yours would be beautiful too, Naruto, if they weren't tainted with blue," Aunty Em told them, "My, yes, it has been a long time since I've seen such beautiful gray eyes like that."

She reached out as if to stroke Annabeth's cheek, but she stood up abruptly.

"We really should go.

"Yes!" Grover swallowed his waxed paper and stood up. "The ringmaster is waiting! Right!"

Naruto was all too glad to stand up too, but Percy was still being stubborn.

"Please, dears," Aunty Em pleaded. "I so rarely get to be with children. Before you go, won't you at least sit for a pose?"

"A pose?" Naruto asked.

"A photograph. I will use it to model a new statue set. Children are so popular, you see. Everyone loves children."

Annabeth shifted from foot to foot. "I don't think we can ma'am. Come on, Percy—"

"Sure we can," Percy said. He was irritated with Annabeth and Naruto for being so bossy, so rude to an old lady who'd just fed them for free. "It's just a photo, guys. What's the harm?"

"Yes, Annabeth and Naruto," the woman purred. "No harm."

Unfortunately they had no other choice but had Aunty Em lead them back out the front door into the garden of statues at the park bench.

"Now," she said, "I'll just position you correctly. The young girl in the middle, I think, Percy and Grover on either side of her, and—yes, Naruto why don't you stand behind.

Everyone did as they were told.

"Not much light for a photo," Percy remarked.

"Oh, enough," Aunty Em said. "Enough for us to see each other, yes? Ah, Naruto dear, what are you doing."

Naruto was doing some hand signs but stopped. "I was deciding what cool pose I should do. I want to make this count after all," Naruto said.

"Oh don't worry honey. Just stand there and smiled.

"Where's the camera?" Grover asked.

Aunty Em stepped back as if to admire the shot. "Now, the face is the most difficult. Can you smile for me please, everyone? A large smile?"

Grover glanced at the cement satyr next to him and mumbled, "That sure does look like Uncle Ferdinand."

"Grover," Aunty Em chastised, "look this way, dear. Oh, Naruto, I told you not to worry about your pose, so will you stop fiddling with your hands, dear."

"Sorry, force of habit," Naruto lied stopping at the final hand sign.

"Percy—" Annabeth said.

"I will just be a moment," Aunty Em said. "You know, I can't see you very well in this cursed veil…"

"Percy, something's wrong," Annabeth insisted.

"Wrong?" Aunty Em said, reaching up to undo the wrap around her head. "Not at all, dear. I have such noble company tonight. What could be wrong?"

"That _is_ Uncle Ferdinand!" Grover gasped.

"Look away from her!" Annabeth shouted. She whipped her Yankees cap onto her head and vanished. Naruto pushed Percy and Grover into the ground as Naruto looked at Aunty Em's true eyes—or rather Medusa's true face, a chocolate brown skin with snakes for hair—which explains why the sound was familiar.

"My first victim!" Medusa said.

However, instead of turning into stone, there was a puff of smoke and a statue of boy scout that was nearby took his place.

"Darn it boy!"

"Run!" Grover bleated as he raced across the gravel, yelling _"Maia!"_ to kick-start his flying sneakers.

However, Percy didn't move.

"Such a pity to destroy a handsome young face," Aunty Em told Percy soothingly. "Stay with me, Percy. All you have to do is look up."

Percy was tempted until she saw a gazing ball nearby and saw Medusa's true face as well and realize who she was.

"The Gray-Eyed One did this to me, Percy, "Medusa said continue, "Annabeth's mother and Naruto's grandmother, the cursed Athena, turned me from a beautiful woman into this."

However a kunai knife was thrown out of nowhere and hit Medusa in the shoulder. She screeched in pain but it didn't kill her.

"Don't put all the blame on Athena!" Naruto yelled from one place.

"Your actions has as much fault for your curse." Said another Naruto from another statue.

"Yeah!" a dozen Naruto's yelled.

Naruto had used the Shadow Clone Jutsu during the time of confusion and distraction.

"Silence!" Medusa hissed. "I will crush you and your aunt to dust!"

"You'll have to find the real me first!" a Naruto mocked.

"Do you really want to help the gods?" Medusa asked. "Do you understand what awaits you on this foolish quest, Percy? What will happen if you reach the Underworld? Do not be a pawn of the Olympians, my dear. You would be better off as a statue. Less pain. Less pain."

"Wind Style: Hurricane Fist Jutsu!"

All of the Naruto's made a punching motion and a vortex of wind shot out of their hand and hit Medusa. Grover then came in with a tree branch while still flying, his eyes closed tight, and hit Medusa using his sense of smell. Medusa snarled at the two.

Right next to Percy, Annabeth's voice said, "Percy!"

Percy jumped so high his feet nearly cleared a garden gnome. "Jeez! Don't do that!"

Annabeth took off her Yankees cap and become visible. You have to cut her head off."

"What? Are you crazy? Let's get out of here."

"Medusa is a menace. She's evil. I'd kill her myself, but…" Annabeth swallowed, as if she were about to make a difficult admission. "But you and Naruto both got the better weapon. Not to mention, Naruto and I can't get close to her. She'd slice us to bits because of my mother. You—you've got a chance."

"What? I can't—"

"Look, do you want her turning more innocent people into statues?"

"Well, no, but how—"

"Hello!" Naruto said appearing causing Percy to jump.

"Seriously! What's up with you two trying to give me a heart attack?" Percy responded.

"It's fun for one thing," Naruto said, "And I thought to drop something off for you."

Naruto untied his headband and dropped it into Percy's lap.

"What?" Percy responded.

"I'll distract her as best as I can with my shadow clones, but Annabeth's right. Since Athena is my grandmother, Medusa won't let me get near her. She already destroyed most of my clones," Naruto said, "And the metal plate on my headband has a better reflected surface since I had it coated with Celestial Bronze. Just don't destroy it."

Naruto jumped off to help Grover out, who had thrown another swing at Medusa.

"What am I suppose to do with this?" Percy asked.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Just look at her through the metal plate. _Never_ look at her directly."

"Wind Style Jutsu: Wind Scythe Jutsu!" There was a sound of shredding wind.

When it died down, Grover said, "Hey guys! I think Naruto did it!"

 _"Roooaaarrr!"_

"Never mind—it did major damage though."

"You better hurry!" Annabeth said.

Percy nodded and took out his pen and uncapped it. The bronze blade of Riptide elongated in his hand.

Percy followed the hissing and spitting sounds of Medusa's hair while keeping his eyes on Naruto's headband. Then, he saw her.

Grover was coming in for another bat, but this time he flew a little too low. Medusa grabbed the stick and pulled him off course. He tumbled through the air, hit the real Naruto who wasn't wearing a headband and had jumped in the air to catch him only for both of them to hit the statue of the grizzly statue.

When they did that, the shadow clones disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Medusa was about to lunge at both of them when Percy yelled, "Hey!"

He advanced on her, which she allowed him approach—twenty feet, ten feet.

"You wouldn't harm an old woman, Percy," she crooned. "I know you wouldn't."

Percy hesitated.

"Don't listen to her!" Grover groaned.

"Grover, would you get off me!" Naruto groaned.

Medusa cackled. "Too late."

She lunged at Percy with her talons.

Percy slashed up with his sword and heard a sickening _shlock!_ , then a hiss like wind rushing out of a cavern—the sound of a monster disintegrating.

Medusa's head fell to the ground next too Percy's foot and blood oozed out toward his feet and snakes were tugging at his shoe laces.

"Oh, yuck!" Grover said.

"Seriously Grover, GET OFF ME!" Naruto responded.

Annabeth came up next to Percy, her eyes fixed on the sky. She was holding Medusa's veil. She said, "Don't move."

Very, very carefully, without looking down, she knelt and draped the monster's head in black cloth, then picked it up. It was still dripping green blood.

"Are you okay?" she asked Percy, her voice trembling.

"Yeah," he decided, though he felt like throwing up his double cheeseburger. "Why didn't… why didn't the head evaporated?"

"Once you sever it, it becomes a spoil of war," she said. "Same as yours and Naruto's minotaur horns. But don't unwrap the head. It can still petrify you."

Grover and Naruto manage to untangle themselves from the Grizzly Bear statue, both ruffled up and injured. Grover's fake feet were knocked off as his winged shoes circled around them

"Great job, guys," Percy said, "The Red Baron, and The Shinobi Half-Blood in action."

"That was fun" Grover agreed, "Well except crashing into Naruto and the grizzly bear."

Grover grabbed his shoes as Percy recapped his sword. Together, the four of them stumbled back into the warehouse.

They found some old plastic grocery bags behind the snack counter and double-wrapped Medusa's head. They plopped it on the table where they ate dinner and sat around it, too exhausted to speak.

Finally Percy said, "So we have Athena to thank for this monster."

Annabeth flashed him an irritated look. "Your dad actually. Medusa was Poseidon's girlfriend. They decided to meet in my mother's temple. That's why Athena turned her into a monster. Medusa had her two sisters who had helped her get into the temple, they became the three gorgons. That's why Medusa wanted to slice Naruto and me up, but she wanted to preserve you as a nice statue. She's still sweet on your dad. You probably reminded her of him."

"Oh, so now it's _my_ fault we met Medusa."

"Don't even start it you two," Naruto warned, "Grover and I tried to warn you guys when we were across the street, but _no_ , you were attracted by the smell of greasy fried food like an Akamichi to an all-you-can-eat barbeque restaurant."

Percy and Annabeth turned red with embarrassment even though they didn't know what Naruto meat.

"So what are we going to do with the head?" Grover asked.

"I could seal it into a storage seal," Naruto responded.

"I have a better idea," Percy said. "I'll be back."

"Percy," Annabeth called after him, "What are you—"

But Percy had already left into the office. When he came back, he had a box and a packing slips for Hermes Overnight Express.

He packed up Medusa's head and filled out a delivery slip:

The Gods  
Mount Olympus  
600th Floor,  
Empire State Building  
New York, NY  
With best of wishes,  
PERCY JACKSON

"They're not going to like that," Grover warned. "They'll think you're impertinent."

"I _am_ impertinent!" Percy said as he poured in some drachmas, "Maybe this time they won't lose the stupid bolt."

That's when an idea came to Naruto's mind and he gave his trade mark mischievous grin. "Hold on, Percy, I want to add something."

Naruto raced back into the office and came back with a hand written note he made while in there. Then he took off his backpack and dug into it before taking out the lightning bolt plushy he bought back in Manhattan. He also squeezed it, causing it to make a zapping sound.

Percy Grover and Annabeth burst out laughing at the sight of the toy.

"Where did you get that?" Percy asked between laughs.

"Back at the toy store. I saw it and I just had to get it," Naruto replied.

"Put it in!" Percy said opening the box. Naruto was all too happy to put it in. Then Percy sealed it up.

There was a sound like a cash register. The package floated off the table and disappeared with a _pop_!"

"Naruto, without a doubt, you truly are Hermes Grandson," Grover laughed.

Annabeth rolled her eyes still trying to control her giggles. "Come on, guys! We need a new plan."


	13. Meeting Ends With a Laugh

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next chapter there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

* * *

 **Meeting Ends With a Laugh**

Everyone was pretty much miserable that night.

They camped out in the woods, a hundred yards from the main road, in a marshy clearing that local kids had obviously been using for parties. The ground was littered with flatten soda cans and fast-food wrappers.

They'd taken some food and blankets from Aunty Em's but they didn't dare light a fire to dry their damp clothes. The Furies and Medusa had provided enough excitement for one day. They didn't want to attract any more monsters.

Naruto decided to summon one shadow clone to keep watch for them while they sleep. He and Grover took comfort in the trees—using tree walking exorcise and winged shoes—while Annabeth and Percy took the ground.

Naruto gave Percy and Annabeth his spare sleeping bags to go with the blankets they took from Medusa's lair. He offered one to Grover, but the young satyr turned it down. Annabeth curled up and was snoring as soon as her head hit the ground leaving only the boys awake.

"This makes me sad," Grover said.

"What does?" Percy asked, "The fact that you signed up for this stupid quest?"

"No. _This_ makes me sad." He pointed at all the garbage on the ground. "And the sky. You can't even see the stars. They polluted the sky."

"Tell me about it," Naruto responded. "The leaf village is big enough to be consider a city in this world, and it's _nowhere_ near as polluted as here."

Grover sighed. "This is a terrible time to be a satyr."

"Oh, yeah. I guess you'd be an environmentalist," Percy sad.

He glared at Percy. "Only an inconsiderate human wouldn't be. Most of your species is clogging up the world so fast… ah, never mind. It's useless to lecture a human. At the rate things are going, I'll never find Pan."

"Pam? Like the cooking spray?"

"Pan!" he cried indignantly. "P-A-N. The great god Pan!"

"He would also be my uncle," Naruto remembered. "Being a son of Hermes."

Grover nodded. "Maybe he's in the Elemental Nations. Maybe that's why no other satyr has found him. That's why I want my searcher's license. I want to be the one to find him and bring him back."

A strange breeze rustled through the clearing, temporarily overpowering the stink of trash and muck. It brought the smell of berries and wildflowers and clean rainwater, things that might've once been in the woods.

"Tell me about the search," Percy said.

Grover looked at Percy cautiously, as if he were afraid Percy was just making fun of him.

"The God of Wild Places disappeared two thousand years ago," he said, "A sailor off the coast of Ephesos heard a mysterious voice crying out from the shore, 'Tell them that the great god Pan has died!' When humans heard the news, they believed it. They've been pillaging Pan's kingdom ever since. But for the satyrs, Pan was our lord and master. He protected us and the wild places of the earth. We refuse to believe that he died. In every generation, the bravest satyr pledge their lives to finding Pan. They searched the earth, exploring all the wildest places, hoping to find where he is hidden, and wake him from his sleep."

"And you want to be a searcher."

"It's my life's dream," he said. "My father was a searcher. And my Uncle Ferdinand… the statue you saw back there—"

"Oh, right, sorry."

Grover shook his head. "Uncle Ferdinand knew the risk. So did my dad. But I'll succeed. I'll be the first searcher to return alive."

"What did you mean first?" Naruto asked.

Grover took his reed pipes out of his pocket. "No searcher has ever come back. Once they set out, they disappear. They're never seen alive again."

"Not once in two thousand years?" Percy asked.

"No."

"And your dad? You have no idea what happened to him?"

"Nope."

"But you still want to go," Percy said, amazed, "I mean, you really think you'll be the one to find Pan?"

"I have to believe that, Percy. Every searcher does. It's the only thing that keeps us from despair when we look at what humans have done to the world. I have to believe Pan can still be awaken."

"I can understand what that means," Naruto responded, "When you live a life where you only see despair or hatred, it helps to have a something worth living for."

"You sound like you know what it's like," Percy said.

"I had—a difficult childhood," Naruto responded, "But I'm not the only one, I met two others since becoming a ninja who went through a life of hatred and despair. And all I can tell you is that not all motivations to live starts off as honorable as risking your life to find Pan."

There was a moment of silence.

"How are we going to get into the Underworld?" Percy asked his friend. "I mean, what chance do we have against a god?"

"Hard to say," Naruto said. "If it was fall or winter, I say we might have a chance to negotiate at least if Persephone was there since she's the only one known to calm the Lord of the Dead. But since it's summer, Persephone should be spending her free time with her mother: Demeter."

"Oh goody," Percy said.

"Maybe so—but back at Medusa's, when you two were stocking up on her food supply for the trip, Annabeth was telling me—"

"Oh, I forgot. Annabeth will have a plan figured out. Like having me get beaten by Clarisse and four of her siblings while she let Luke get the flag."

"For the last time, Percy, that wasn't Annabeth's fault," Naruto said, "I was supposed to assist you in case you were outnumbered and out matched, when I heard the Hellhound."

"Naruto's right, Percy. Don't be so hard on her. Besides, she had a tough life, but she's a good person. After all, she forgave me…" his voice faltered.

"What do you mean?" Percy asked. "Forgave you for what?"

Suddenly, Grover seemed very interested in playing notes on his pipes.

"Wait a minute," Percy said. "Your first Keeper Job was five years ago. Annabeth has been at camp five years. She wasn't… I mean, your first assignment that went wrong—"

"I can't talk about it," Grover said, and his quivering lower lip suggested he'd started crying if Percy pressed him. "But as I was saying, back at Medusa's, Annabeth and I agreed there's something strange going on with this quest."

"Yeah, I noticed it too," Naruto responded. "Maybe it has to do with the warning I got in my last dream, but—I don't know, this whole quest seem wrong."

"Well, duh. I'm getting blamed for stealing a thunderbolt that Hades took."

"That's not what I mean," Grover said. "The Fur—The Kindly One Annabeth and I fought seem to be holding back. Like Mrs. Dodds at Yancy Academy… why did she wait so long to try to kill you? Then on the bus, they just weren't aggressive as they could've been."

"They seemed plenty of aggressive to me."

"I been wondering about Mrs. Dodds myself since we started suspecting Hades," Naruto said. "She kept asking Percy _Where is it?_ Like they were looking for something. If she really was after Percy, why would she asked that when he was standing right there?"

"Maybe we misunderstood something about this quest, and we only have nine days to find the master bolt…" Grover stopped.

"Well, after the bus incident, I do agree that Hades is _somehow_ involved with this quest, but I don't think it's as simple as Hades taking the bolt," Naruto responded.

There was a moment of silence before Percy broke it. "I haven't been straight with you guys," he said. "I don't care about the Master Bolt. I agree to go to the Underworld so I could bring back my mother."

"Not a big surprise," Naruto responded.

"You knew?" Percy asked.

"It doesn't take a genius to know what you're up too, Percy," Naruto responded. "If I was in your shoes, I would do the same. However, if the Bolt is in the Underworld, then I'm going to make sure you get out of there with the bolt as well."

"Why?" Percy asked, "I mean, your grandparents ignored you for almost thirteen years of your life, right?"

Naruto glare at his friend, that told Percy if it wasn't for the fact Naruto was in a tree right now, Naruto would smack the back of his head.

"Longer than I have wanted to be Hokage, I wanted a family, Percy. The closest thing to mortal family I had was the Third Hokage, my academy instructor, a perverted Sanin, my friends and teammates, Kakashi-sensei, and even Grandma Tsunade, but most of them I didn't see as family until after I became a Genin," Naruto said, "Now I found out I have two living grandparents two cabin full of aunts and uncles, and I don't want to lose them, but at the same time, I'm not about to betray my friends either. So if finding the Master Bolt and helping you rescue your mom if possible can put a stop in this war before I have to choose between friends and family, I'm going to do what I can to see this quest through to the end."

That pretty much ended the conversation.

"Let's get some sleep guys," Grover said, "We got a long journey tomorrow."

No one argued as they got made themselves comfortable as they could for some sleep.

…Olympus…

While Naruto was falling asleep on a tree, Olympians were dealing with a possible war.

"I KNOW YOU HAVE IT. JUST GIVE IT BACK. THIS IS JUST BECAUSE MOTHER RHEA LIKED ME BETTER ISN'T IT" Zeus shouted.

"STOP TALKING TRASH LITTLE BROTHER. I DON'T HAVE YOUR STUPID TOY," Poseidon argued back.

"IT'S NOT A TOY!"

Most of the other Olympians were wondering why they had to be there. Others just wished this argument end, one was just grinning like an idiot hoping for war.

Just then a brown hair nine year old girl showed in the Hearth.

Dionysus finally walked into the throne room hearing the argument. He has only returned because he had to report about the quest. He was rather disappointed that Percy went on the quest, as he had high hopes to turn the son of Poseidon and half-brother of his least favorite half-blood cousin in history into a dolphin.

"Dionysus, why are you here?" Zeus asked.

"I'm here to report that a quest for your Master Bolt has been issued, father," Dionysus said.

"About time. Not only it's been a while since we had a news of a quest, but too be honest, this argument is getting old," the crippled god Hephaestus responded, "So, who's on this quest?"

Many of the gods were wondering the same thing as it meant bragging rights if it is completed.

"Chiron has picked the son of Poseidon to lead the quest," Dionysus said.

Poseidon had a grin on his face and puffing his chest with pride.

"There is also Athena's daughter—Annabell—"

"Annabeth," Athena said with a slight pride and worried as it meant that her daughter was on a quest with the sea spawn.

"Whatever. Also yours and Hermes grandson Nagato Umuzaki—"

"Naruto?" Hermes responded with a little pride and enjoyment. No one could blame him since Naruto could possibly bring honor back to Cabin Eleven since Luke failed his last quest.

Athena eased hearing that Naruto went on the quest. She didn't like the idea that Naruto was still best friends with the sea spawn, but if Naruto was there, at least she didn't have to worry about Annabeth.

"That's right," Dionysus said, "Finally the satyr Grover Underwood…"

"Wait, that's four, isn't that against traditions?" asked the auburn haired goddess Artemis.

"Normally, yes, but apparently the oracle predicted that four would go on the quest," Dionysus said.

"Ah yeah, I remember seeing a group like that fighting Furies and Medusa," the golden hair archer god and Artemis' twin brother: Apollo, "That Naruto kid was really clever modifying Athena's daughter's plan to turn Poseidon's son's loyalty to their advantage."

The said Olympian parents/grandparents of the demigods on the quest glared at Apollo as they released their auras on him. However at the same time Hermes was proud of the fact Naruto used his friend's loyalty and possibly fatal flaw to their favor. Athena was also slightly impressed by Naruto's tactic but had a god feeling Annabeth didn't like it.

"Oh! That reminds me!" Hermes said as it eased the attention. "I got a package for Olympus earlier."

Hermes took out his magical mail bag and searched through it until he brought out the package Percy had sent off earlier. "It's from Poseidon's son."

He unsealed the box and opened it.

"Eww!" Hermes said as he pulled the head of Medusa out of the box and showed t to the other gods. "I'm guessing he is not too happy with us."

"HE DARES INSULT US LIKE THIS?" Zeus stormed while Poseidon rolled his eyes.

"He just lost his temper. And after fighting Medusa and the furies, who could blame him," Poseidson said with a few others agreeing, mostly because if the kids get the bolt then the fighting would end.

"Hold on, there's something else," Hermes said gaining everyone's attention.

He pulled out a note and began reading it. He had an unreadable expression on his face before he looked back down into the box. As soon as he did, Hermes burst out laughing surprising everyone as he had to hold his sides.

"HE'S A GENIUS!" Hermes called out while the other Olympians looked at him as if he went mad.

"What did the sea spawn do this time?" Athena asked.

"I'm not talking about Poseidon's son—although he was the one who send us the Medusa's head," Hermes explained between breaths.

Everyone looked at Hermes like he lost it, so Athena picked up the letter to read out loud.

 _Dear Great-Grandpa Zeus,_

 _Since we are on a mission for your Master Bolt, I'm guessing you're a little glum about not having your favorite toy, and I bet Percy sending you Medusa's head won't help. So I thought I should send this as a peace offering and a temporary replacement until you get your bolt back. I hope you enjoy._

 _From,_

 _Naruto Uzumaki_

 _Grandson of Athena and Hermes_

"What did your grandson send us?" the queen of Olympus Hera asked a little intrigued as was everyone else.

Hermes was still in a laughing fit as he put his hands in the box and pulled out a bright yellow beanie-plus lightning bolt shape toy. He threw it to Zeus, who caught it and had an angry look on his face.

"IS THIS A JOKE!" he roared out but got no answer when he saw all the Olympians either had their hands clamped over their mouths or was biting their lips trying not to burst out laughing.

Then Zeus inadvertently squished the toy and made a zapping noise that sounded out threw the silent room. That was the breaking point.

Apollo Hermes and Dionysus fell onto the ground laughing while Hephaestus and the war god Ares were gripping their thrones trying not to fall down from laughing. Poseidon had let out a bellow of laughter while the goddesses were giggling madly, even Hera and Artemis couldn't help but giggle at Naruto's peace offering to Zeus.

The laughs were so loud that every minor god and goddess on Olympus could hear it as they started wondering what was so funny.

"Athena; I never thought this was possible, but I've already like your Grandson," Poseidon said, "You too Hermes."

Every other Olympians nodded in agreement with the sea god.

Only Zeus wasn't happy as he was pouting like a little kid. "I hate this kid already."

…

Unaware of his new found popularity on Olympus, Naruto manage to get some sleep, only to have another weird dream.

This time Naruto was in a dark cavern before a gapping pit. Gray mist creatures churned all around him, whispering rags of smoke that he somehow knew were the spirits of the dead.

Unlike the previous dreams though, Naruto was on his own. No Percy. Just him.

 _The little Jinchuriki Half-Blood. I must admit, I never thought you would be the first to be brought to this world, but maybe I can use you_ , an amused ancient cold and heavy voice echoed far down in the darkness. _Joined me boy. Stop helping the Olympians. I know what's in you, and they know too, and once you become a threat with it, they will not only abandoned or kill you. Join me and not only I won't abandon you, but I will help you control the fox's power and unlock your true potential._

"I'll never join you!" Naruto yelled.

 _Oh, you will, or your death will come sooner than you think,_ the voice said, _You may think you're safe, but eventually the dangers of the Elemental Nations you were brought here to avoid will catch up, and the Olympians will make a choice to get rid of you._

The ghost seemed to laugh at Naruto as there was a sudden suck of air that pulled Naruto toward it.

…

Naruto woke with a start that he nearly fell off his tree.

"Hey, Naruto! Are you planning to sleep there all day?" a voice yelled.

Naruto looked down to see that his friends were awake and it was Annabeth who called him.

Naruto got up and jumped down to his friends.

Once on the ground he noticed two things: that Annabeth had made everyone breakfast and Grover had a poodle that was as pink as Sakura's hair, which Naruto learned is unnatural in this world.

The poodle yapped at Naruto. Grover said, "It's complicated."

Normally someone find Grover talking to a poodle strange, but since Naruto was best friends with Kiba Inuzuka who understands his dog Akamaru, he's not complaining. Plus after hearing about how satyrs saw Lord Pan as their lord and master, he wouldn't be surprise if Satyrs could talk to all wild creatures.

"What's its name?" Naruto asked.

Percy shot him a _'what the heck'_ look. Naruto guessed Percy just realize Grover could talk to animals and was getting used to it.

"His name is Gladiola," Grover replied.

"Hey Gladiola, my name is Naruto Uzumaki," Naruto responded.

Percy shot him a look that said, _'Seriously'_.

Grover informed Naruto about Gladiola's plan to help them with their quest financially. Apparently the poodle has a reward for its safe return.

"Sounds good. It will save us money," Naruto responded.

"Yeah, but how are we supposed to _get_ to LA?" Percy asked, "Not another bus I hope."

"No," Annabeth agreed.

She pointed downhill, toward train tracks they couldn't see last night in the dark. "There's an Amtrack station half a mile that way. According to Gladiola, the westbound train leaves at noon."

"Then we better pack up," Naruto said.


	14. Hestia Makes Naruto a Good Offer

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next chapter there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

I don't own Percy Jackson series or Naruto series, or any of the characters of either series.

* * *

 **Hestia Makes Naruto a Good Offer**

Good thing one of the things Naruto packed was his copy of the _Gutsy Ninja_ and Annabeth was there, because he would have been stir crazy trying to stay put in the train. He probably did Annabeth a lot of good too since her book on architects was on the bus. Only Percy wasn't so keen about reading, so he was the only one stir crazy.

They ended up only getting tickets as far as Denver Colorado so they can save whatever cash they have left, and didn't get any sleeper car to save cash which was a good thing too because while they were at the train station Percy and Naruto found their pictures splattered over the front pages of several East Coast newspaper. The _Trenton Register-News_ showed two photos taken by te tourist as they got off the Greyhound bus. Both had wild looks in their eyes. Their swords was a metallic blur in their hands.

The Picture's caption read:

Twelve year-old Percy Jackson and thirteen year old Naruto Uzumaki, wanted for questioning in the Long Island disappearance of Sally Jackson two weeks ago, is shown here fleeing from the bus where the accosted several elderly female passengers. The bus exploded on an east New Jersey roadside shortly after Jackson and Uzumaki fled the scene. Based on eyewitness accounts, police believed the two boys may be traveling with two teenage accomplices. Investigations are being led on Mr. Uzumaki's trust funds while Percy's stepfather, Gabe Ugliano, has offered a cash reward for information leading to their capture.

"How is it the Kindly Ones attack us, and we're the criminals?" Naruto asked.

"Don't worry," Annabeth told them, "Mortal police could never find us." But even she didn't sound so sure.

Now, Naruto had limited access to his trust fund _without_ drawing attention to himself.

On the first day of the trip Annabeth and Percy was asleep while Naruto and Grover decided to buy time playing cards. Instead of gambling whatever money they had left, Naruto offered his headband as a temporary laurel for the winner of each game. Naruto actually recommend it so Grover wouldn't practice his reed pipes. The poor satyr was already threatened to be kicked off the train if he doesn't stop.

At the same time, Naruto was plotting for some way to get back at Gabe. Only way for the police to know about the trust funds his grandparents left him was if Gabe told them about Naruto's money. He never told Gabe about it, but it doesn't take much brain cells to figure out that Naruto wasn't poor or homeless despite being an orphan.

Sometime during their game, Annabeth, who was sitting next to Naruto, laid her head on him.

"I think Annabeth is warming up to you, Naruto," Grover said.

"Really? I thought I ruin any possible chance of a family relationship when I suggest changing Annabeth's plan to Percy's liking," Naruto said, "Or blaming both her and Percy for falling for the greasy fried food smell trap in Medusa's lair."

Grover laughed a little. "Believe me Naruto, all you did was hurt Annabeth's pride a little. If Annabeth was really mad about something like that, you would know."

"Do I want to know what you mean by that?" Naruto asked.

"It's best you find out yourself, or I hope you don't," Grover said.

"Annabeth was one of the demigods Thalia made friends wasn't she?" Naruto asked.

"Luke too," Grover replied.

Naruto nodded not surprise, especially that Grover knew after last night. "What was Thalia like?"

Grover folded his cards and struggled with finding the words. Naruto had a feeling that it was a taboo for him.

"Thalia, well, I guess the best word to describe her was fierce," Grover said. "She was a fierce fighter, and her main weapon was a spear and aegis shield. She was especially fierce protecting those she cared about and valued everyone's friendship. She would fight with everything she have. She was strong for everyone, not just herself."

"Sounds like she have a strong will of fire," Naruto responded, "The will to keep fighting in order to protect your family, friends, and homes even when it seems pointless."

Grover nodded. "She probably did have it. I mean, she pretty much raised Annabeth for a good six months before I found them. She was a big sister to Annabeth and she always had a special place for Annabeth in her heart."

"She was the best," whispered a voice making both of them look over to see Annabeth with her eyes open but her head still against Naruto's shoulder. "I still miss her."

"That's good that you miss her," Naruto said, "If you miss someone, then it means you truly cared about them."

"Really?" she asked straightening up as Naruto, "What about you? Is there anyone you lost who you miss?"

Grover acted like he wasn't listening since he already knew the answer from Naruto's Percy's and his conversation the other night. It doesn't take a satyr to know he had people he cared about back in the elemental nations.

Naruto nodded, "My parents for one. Even before I knew who they were I missed them deeply and I wished I got to know them before they died. There's was also the Third Hokage. He was like what you would call a mortal grandfather to me, always looking after me and making sure I get what I need even though he had the village and his own grandson to deal with. Sadly he died a few months before I came to this world—killed by the only student of his that gone rogue and betrayed the leaf."

"He sounds like a good person," Annabeth said.

"He was." Naruto said.

"What about others that are still alive?" Annabeth asked. "You mention an Akamichi back in Medusa's lair."

Naruto laughed, "That's actually a name of a clan in the leaf, but I do have a good friend that is a member of the Akamichi Clan. His name is Choji, and man, does he like barbeque. You wouldn't think he's aggressive enough to be a ninja. But if you ever call him Fatty or take the last piece of BBQ from him, your opinion quickly changes. But to answer your question, yes I'll miss the friends I had there. Too be honest, I'm worried about my friends that came with me to retrieve a leaf Genin that went rogue. We sort of split off during the mission when it turned life-risking to fight off enemies and I haven't seen them since."

Naruto decided not to mention the Genin that went rogue was his own teammate.

"That's understandable," Grover said, "Who were they?"

"Well, there was the team leader and only Chuunin amongst our team, Shikamaru Nara. Before you ask Annabeth, he's smart enough that he probably can go toe to toe with everyone in Cabin Six in battle strategy," Naruto said, "Then there's Choji of course. Then there was Kiba and his dog Akamaru since Kiba's clan is known for their super sense of smell and work with ninja hounds. There was also Neji Hyuuga who graduated a year ahead of us and I would guess top of his class since he was consider a gifted genius. Finally, as far as I know, Rock Lee, who can't use ninjutsu or Genjutsu but is a hard worker in Taijutsu came in later during the mission to help me out despite still recovering from injuries he got during the Chuunin exams that almost ended his ninja career."

"And you don't know what happened to them?" Annabeth asked.

Naruto shook his head and decided to change the topics by picking up his ninja headband. "Anyways, this is the only thing I have to remember out of everyone I either respected, care about, and/or saw as a friend.

"Your headband?" Annabeth asked. Even Grover was listening as Naruto nodded.

"It originally belong to my ninja academy instructor: Iruka Umino, on the night I became a ninja," Naruto responded, "He was the first adult who openly acknowledge me for who I am."

There was a moment of silence before Annabeth asked. "You want to see a picture of Thalia?"

Naruto was a little surprise as Annabeth sat up a little before digging her hand into her pocket. In her hand was an old photo that looked like it had seen better days and had a few tears on the side and was a bit crumpled.

"I always keep this with me. Sort of like a keepsake, I guess," she said as she handed it to Naruto.

Naruto scanned the picture and saw what he guess was a seven year old Annabeth. She was actually adorable in it.

Next to her Naruto recognize as his maternal uncle Luke with his elfish features and was actually happy. The biggest difference was he didn't have a scar, so Naruto guessed Luke got it after this photo was taken.

Then his eyes went to the girl next to them. She had shoulder length hair that spiked at the end, electric blue eyes, and freckles across her nose and under her eyes. She was wearing a combination of punk and goth clothes. She was smiling while her gaze had drifted to Annabeth who looked like she was keeping close to her.

In many ways, if the expression Gaara had when Naruto met him reminded Naruto of the way he was before Iruka acknowledged him, then Annabeth's expression in the photo with Thalia reminded Naruto of the way he was after Iruka acknowledged him.

"Thanks," Naruto responded as he handed it back to Annabeth.

"She would have liked you. She always liked strong people who had kind hearts," Annabeth said. "And considering you're willing to defy Athena's and Poseidon's rivalry to stay friends with Percy, you must have both."

Naruto chuckled. "It helps to smack the back of his head every time he pushes his luck."

Naruto looked at his friend and held back his laughter as Percy had a stream of drool from his mouth. "You're right! Percy really does drool in his sleep."

"He is the son of the sea god, so it make sense," she said.

The three of them laughed along with the whole cabin which woke up Percy and stared at them in confusion.

"What?" he asked subconsciously wiping the drool off his face making them all snicker a little before their stomachs growled a little.

"I better get us something to eat," Naruto said standing up.

"I'll come with you. I need to stretched my legs," Annabeth said as she got up and followed after Naruto toward the dining cart.

They headed to the dining cart where there were only few people there which gave them plenty to eat.

Annabeth and Naruto quickly grabbed the trays and filled them up with anything they can find for them and Percy before searching around for vegetarian friendly meals.

"May I help you?" someone asked.

Naruto looked up to see a young girl with mousy brown hair and eyes that seems to be on fire. The oddest part was that the girl looked familiar.

"Ah yeah, do you have any suggestions for a vegetarian?" Annabeth asked.

"Well, it depends, what do you or your friend likes?" she asked.

"Enchiladas, that much I know for sure," Naruto responded, "But I doubt you have—"

"Here you go, dears," she handed them a container with four enchiladas that seemed to come out of nowhere.

"Uh—thanks," Naruto said confused until Annabeth gasped as if realizing who the girl was.

"Lady Hestia," Annabeth said.

"Lady Hestia?" Naruto asked. "As in the goddess of Hearth and Home who gave up her throne to Lord Dionysus to keep peace in her family?"

"The very same," Hestia said with a smile. "I'm happy to hear someone as young as you remember me."

"What brings you here?" Annabeth asked.

"Well, for one thing, I wanted to meet the boy who became the talk of Olympus," Hestia said.

"Um… Percy is back at our cabin," Naruto said.

"Oh, no. I'm not talking about my nephew, Naruto. I'm referring to you."

Naruto blinked for a bit, "What?"

Hestia nodded with a heart warming smile. "Yes, young hero. I wished I was there to see it, but from what I been told, that present you send to my brother has caused quite a bit of laugh. They're even saying that Poseidon admitted to Athena and Hermes both that he liked you for what you did."

Naruto was speechless as Annabeth was utterly confused. "Poseidon really did that?"

Hestia nodded. "It really was a shocker since my brother and niece haven't gotten along since they made the first chariot, much less than agree on anything. In fact, if it wasn't for Zeus, you probably have succeeded with bringing a temporary peace offering."

Naruto grinned hearing that as Annabeth shook her head in disbelief.

"I'm also here to deliver a message and to offer Naruto something," Hestia said.

"Message? Isn't that normally Grandpa Hermes' job?" Naruto asked.

"Yes it is, young hero," Hestia said. "But as I said before, I wanted to meet you and to offer you something."

"What kind of offering?" Naruto asked, slightly nervous.

"I want you to be my champion?" Hestia said.

Naruto went from slightly nervous to confuse while Annabeth's eyes were wide.

"Your champion?" Naruto asked.

"It basically means you will have my blessing, even some powers to help you in the future, in return you will come to my service when needed," Hestia said, "But that part you won't have to worry about for quite a bit of time."

"Lady Hestia, forgive me to say this, but you never picked a champion before, so why now" Annabeth said.

"True I never picked a champion before, but I picked Naruto because of his strong will of fire," Hestia said.

"My strong will of fire?" Naruto asked.

Hestia nodded and summoned a blazing fire in the palm of her hand. In it Naruto saw all his friends and those close to him in the leaf back before he left.

There was Naruto Kiba Akamaru Shikamaru and Choji ditching class. The image of team seven getting ready for their first picture. Then Naruto standing up against Neji to for Hinata. Then Naruto eating Ichiraku Ramen with Iruka. Naruto teaching Konohamaru the sexy jutsu—which changed before he succeeded to the Third Hokage visiting Naruto at his apartment. It showed Jiriaya giving Naruto a popsicle during their trip to find Tsunade, and then Naruto eating at the restaurant as Jiriaya talked to Shizune and Tsunade. Finally it showed Naruto on Gamabunta's back going against the Shukaku during the Sand and Sound invasion on the leaf.

"You have a strong bond with many people Naruto, some stronger than others. Truth is, what the leaf consider as the Will of Fire is what empowers my domain, and your will of fire is brighter most of your generation," Hestia said as she closed her fist. "I believe it's your will that will help shape the fate of the Great Prophecy, and I want to help you make sure it falls to our favor."

Naruto was stunned to respond he remembered from Latin class of Olympians picking certain demigods to be their champions: Hera choosing Jason for example. But for him to be offered to be a champion of any Olympian—or former Olympian—and by Hestia of all of them, caught Naruto off guard.

"Um, Hestia. I'm honored and all, but—can I have time to decide?" Naruto asked.

Hestia smiled warmly. "Very well. I know you have a difficult quest ahead of you, so I won't push it. If you return alive, meet me at the hearth at the Amphitheater when you normally do your solo training to give me your decision."

"Thanks," Naruto replied.

"What about the message?" Annabeth asked, "You said you have a message for us."

"I do," Hestia said. "Zeus still believes that Percy Jackson is the lightning thief and won't budge on the deadline for you to return it. Make matters worse, Zeus was angered by Percy's gift, and has a send a monster after you."

"Great," Annabeth sighed, "I knew sending Medusa's head was a bad idea. I'm surprise Zeus isn't sending something special to Naruto since he didn't like his peace offering."

"Believe me, I'm sure my brother would be happy to get rid of Naruto, but considering the circumstances going on right now, I think Zeus is biding his time with Naruto," Hestia said.

Naruto didn't say it, but he had a feeling what Hestia meant. He had the power of the Nine-Tail Fox sealed in him, and Zeus knows it. Naruto was curious why Zeus hasn't smite him though. The Fox demon told him that it would die when he dies.

 _Maybe the old fox was pulling my tail, or perhaps it's like with the monsters of this world,_ Naruto thought.

"Thanks for the warning, Lady Hestia," Annabeth said, "Do you have any advice for us?"

"Just watch who you trust," Hestia said, "Nice talking to you guys, and Naruto, remember my offering."

Hestia click her fingers and disappeared a flash of fire. However, instead of the smell of smoke and fire there was a smell of home cooked thanks giving meal.

Naruto and Annabeth took the food and headed back to Percy and Grover.

Once back, they told them what happened. Percy had some incoherent words about Zeus until they brought up Hestia's offer to Naruto.

"Hestia asked you to be her champion?" Grover asked.

"Yeah, I was surprise too," Naruto said, "But I haven't decided. She's giving me until after the quest to decide."

"That's if we survive it," Percy reminded him.

"Well, for now, I say let's just sit back and relax," Naruto said.

No one argued against it and started to eat. Grover eventually fall asleep, deciding if they're not going to discuss about their situation, he might as well sleep.


	15. Battle against Chimera and Echidna

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next chapter there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

I don't own Percy Jackson series or Naruto series, or any of the characters of either series.

* * *

 **Battle against Chimera and Echidna**

…In Naruto's Mind…

A leaf jonin with blond spiky hair and a leaf headband around his forehead was hiding behind the tree as a ninja with a hat black cloak like shirt white pants, backpack strap to his back, a blade in one hand and a headband with a question mark like symbol was chasing him.

"Why don't you just give up?" the ninja asked, "I'm tired of playing hide and seek!"

The leaf ninja took out two smoke bombs and threw them.

They came at the enemy and exploded sending smoke everywhere.

 _"A smoke bomb?"_ the enemy thought.

Someone came at him and the enemy attack.

The smoke cleared as the leaf ninja was on his hands and legs catching his breath.

"Give up," the enemy responded.

"Can I say something?" the leaf ninja asked.

"I don't want to hear it…now die!" the enemy shouted hitting the leaf ninja and forced him into the tree.

However the ninja disappeared in a puff of smoke.

The real leaf ninja appeared behind the enemy and said, "Trying to make me give up."

The leaf ninja hit the enemy forcing him into the ground.

"Even if you kill me, another assassin will attack the village…" the enemy said, "There will be no peace…as long as we live in this accursed world…of ninjas."

"Then…I will break the curse. If there's such a thing as peace, I will find it! I won't give up," the leaf ninja responded.

"Wh-who are you…?" the enemy asked.

"My name is—" the ninja responded.

…Normal…

"Naruto! Hey Naruto! We're here, you can stop reading!" Percy yelled.

Naruto was reading the Gutsy Ninja when his friends were yelling at him. Naruto looked up at the window and saw that they were indeed in St. Louis. Apparently sometime when Naruto was reading Grover decided to take a nap and was just waken up as he still was intercom told us we'd have a three hour layover before departing for

Grover stretched after waking up from his nap. "Food."

"Come on, goat boy," Annabeth said, "Sightseeing."

"Sightseeing?"

"The Gateway Arch," she said. "This may be my only chance to ride to the top. Are you guys coming or not?"

"Gateway arch?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah. Didn't you see it as we pulled into the city?" Annabeth asked.

"Naruto had his nose dug into the book," Percy reminded her. "I don't think he even heard your dream and Athena's expectations for her children."

"Annabeth already told me about it," Naruto said.

"So do you guys want to go to the arch with me or not?" Annabeth asked.

Grover Percy and Naruto exchanged looks. Clearly they didn't plan for this, but it was hard to argue with Annabeth, and they weren't going to let her go alone.

"I guess it wouldn't hurt," Percy said.

"As long as we look out for our mystery monster," Naruto reminded them.

"And as long as there's a snack bar," Grover stated.

…

The Arch was about a mile from the train station. Late in the day the lines to get in weren't that long, but Percy Grover and Naruto still had to threaded their way through the museum while listening to Annabeth talk about how the arch was built. Grover had to bribe Naruto and Percy with blue and orange jelly beans every now and then when Annabeth wasn't looking just to make sure they listen to everything she said.

"You smell anything?" Percy asked Grover quietly.

Grover took his nose out of the jelly-bean bag long enough to sniff. "Underground," he said distastefully. "Underground air always smells like monsters. Probably doesn't mean anything."

Naruto understand why Percy asked. He had a strong sense of danger from the tunnel. Naruto kept looking for monsters, but couldn't find anything.

 _Could be that Mist,_ Naruto thought. _Gods, I hope not._

"Guys," Percy said. "You know the gods' symbol of power?"

Annabeth was in the middle of reading about the construction equipment used to build the arch, but looked over. "Yeah?"

"Well, Hade—"

Grover cleared his throat. "We're in a public place… you mean, our friend downstairs."

"More like way downstairs," Naruto joked.

"Um, right," Percy said, "Our friend _way_ downstairs. Doesn't he have a hat like Annabeth's?"

"You mean the Helm of Darkness?" Annabeth said. "Yeah, that's his symbol of power. I saw it next to his seat during the inter solstice council meeting. But his helm is a lot more powerful than my invisibility hat, if what I've heard is true."

"Like what?" Percy asked.

"It allows him to become darkness," Grover replied, "He can melt into shadow or pass through walls. He can't be touched, or seen, or heard. And he can radiate fear so intense it can drive you insane or stop your heart. Why do you think all rational creatures fear the dark?"

"But then… how do we know he's not here right now, watching us?" Percy asked

Annabeth and Grover exchange looks.

"We don't," Grover said.

"Am I the only one who finds it odd that we can't go blabbing off certain names, and yet we can name off any symbol of power for the world to hear like it's no big deal?" Naruto asked eating an orange Jelly Bean. "I mean; you guys just went through a whole conversation about the helm of darkness as if it's not as threatening as our friend way downstairs name despite all of it's powers."

Grover and Percy just stared at Naruto in shock. Annabeth was as well, but she had a bit of proud mixed into it.

"Naruto are you feeling okay?" Grover asked.

"Yeah, why?" Naruto asked.

"Because that's the most logical thing you ever said," Percy said.

Naruto shrugged. "I guess my Athena side slipped out. Hey Grover, do we have any orange jelly beans left?"

Grover and Percy sighed. It was typical for Naruto to brush it off like it didn't happen.

Percy and Naruto groaned when they saw the tiny little elevator car to the top of Arch. If there was one thing they hate, it was a confined spaces.

They got shoe horned into the car and took a long trip up.

Finally they reached the observation deck, which Percy described it as a tin can with carpeting silently to Naruto. Rows of tiny windows looked out over the city on one side and the river on the other. The view was good, but Naruto and Percy were bothered by the fact they were in confined space six hundred feet in the air.

Annabeth kept talking about structural supports, and how she would've made the windows bigger, and designed a see through floor.

Naruto noticed that the arch was built next to the river and thought: _If this thing was built over source of a body of water while keeping the underground entrance, I bet it would make a good symbol to the big three."_

"No parents?" Naruto heard someone asked asked.

He turned to a big fat lady and her dog, a Chihuahua with a rhinestone collar.

The lady had beady eyes; pointy, coffee-stained teeth; a floppy denim hat, and denim dress that bulged so much, she looked like a blue-jean blimp.

"They're below," Naruto told her. "Scared of heights."

"Oh, poor darling."

The Chihuahua growled, mostly at Percy who was waiting impatiently nearby to get out of there. The woman said. "Now, now, sonny. Behave."

Naruto had nothing against most dogs, but this Chihuahua gave him a sense of danger. It had beady eyes like its owner, intelligent and vicious.

Naruto asked. "Sonny. Is that his name?"

"No," the lady replied with a smile like it cleared up everything.

"Okay, everyone, the observation deck would be closing in a few minutes, time to get down," the park ranger yelled.

Everyone started getting to the elevator which narrowed down to Naruto, Percy, Annabeth, Grover, the fat lady and her Chihuahua, a small family and a Park Ranger.

Naruto kept an eye on the fat lady who was eyeing Percy. Naruto reached in his pocket where his pen was at when he saw a fork tongue flickering between her teeth.

Naruto may of not been in this world that long, but he knew enough to know when something was abnormal. And a lady with a fork tongue was as abnormal as it could get.

Before Naruto could warn his friends, the Chihuahua jumped down and started yapping at Percy.

"Now, now, sonny," the lady said. "Does this look like a good time? We have all these nice people here and one of them has to be spared."

"Doggie!" said a little boy. "Look, a doggie!'

His parents pulled the boy back.

Annabeth and Grover must have finally realized what Naruto did as they inched closer to Percy along with Naruto as the Chihuahua bared his teeth at Percy, foam dripping from his black lips.

"Well, son," the fat lady sighed. "If you insist."

"Um," Percy interrupted, "did you just call that Chihuahua your son?"

" _Chimera_ , dear," the fat lady corrected. "Not a Chihuahua. It's an easy mistake to make."

"Did she just said Chimera?" Naruto asked.

The Chihuahua barked louder, and with each bark, it grew. At first it was the size of a Doberman, then to a lion. The bark became a roar

The little boy screamed. His parents pulled him back toward the exit, straight into the park ranger, who stood, paralyzed, gaping at the monster.

The Chimera was now so tall its back rubbed against the roof. It had the head of a lion with a blood-caked mane, the body and hooves of a giant goat, and a serpent for a tail, a ten-foot-long diamond back growing right out of its shaggy behind. The rhinestone dog collar still hung around its neck, and the plated sized dog tag was now easy for Naruto and Percy to read: CHIMERA—RABID FIRE-BREATHING, POISONOUS—IF FOUND, PLEASE CALL TARTARUS—EXT 954.

Naruto took out his pen and press the button, springing out _Uzushio no Ōarashi_ at full length. Grover's lip quivered at the sight of the monster but he manage to take out his read pipes as Annabeth raised her knife. The only one not armed was Percy.

"Percy, draw out Riptide," Naruto said.

Percy didn't respond as he seemed frozen.

The lady rolled up her denim sleeves, revealing sh ad scaly green skin on her arms. When she smiled she revealed to have gangs. The pupils in her eyes were sideway slits, like a reptile.

"You're Echidna," Annabeth said, "Mother of all monsters."

The lady made a hissing noise that Naruto guess was her laughter. "That's right hero. Zeus gave me specific orders to kill the son of Poseidon while my chimera can take care of your friends."

The Chimera roared at the demigods before charging at them.

"Annabeth, back me up!" Naruto ordered as he charged at the Chimera.

Annabeth followed Naruto and both of them slashed at the beast. Annabeth's knife only bounced off the rhinestone collar but Naruto manage to slash at it's paw before the Chimera slashed it's tail at him.

Naruto ducked and dodge as Annabeth backed off.

Before they could go at it again, the Chimera roared and this time when it did fire fired out of it's mouth.

Naruto went through hands signs. "Wind Style: Wind Scythe Jutsu!"

Naruto took a deep breath and fired a tornado of slashing wind. The wind collided the with the fire and instead of putting it out, the wind feed the fire to the point it caused a small explosion sending shockwave and black smoke through out the room.

 _This isn't going to work_ , Naruto thought, _We need to get in close to get a good blow._

Percy and Annabeth charged at the Chimera and manage to slash at the monster with their sword and knife as Grover played a quick tune that caused the Chimera to go in a fit of confusion. It tried to blow fire at them with no success other than destroying the inside of the arch. That's when Naruto got an idea

But before Naruto could make his move Percy moved and struck at the Chimera.

Percy wasn't so lucky this time. His blade sparked off the dog's collar and left himself open for the serpent tail to sank its fangs into Percy's calf. Percy screamed in pain as the serpent's tail wrapped around his sword and threw it out of the whole caused by the flames earlier toward the Mississippi River.

"Percy!" Annabeth and Grover yelled.

"Hey big guy!" Naruto yelled, "I read you lost to a walking disaster of a half-blood one!"

The Chimera turned just for Naruto to throw a piece of rubble at the Chimera. However instead of hitting the beast it went under it as the Chimera blew another jet of fire. It hit Naruto and caused him to erupt in flames.

"Naruto!"

"Idiot! We're not suppose to kill the blonde boy!" Echidna yelled.

The Chimera turned around, but before it could respond a puff of smoke appeared under it and a celestial bronze Katana struck under its jaw.

Chimera whimpered before turning into golden dust. Right where Naruto's kunai was at was the actual Naruto—now covered in monster dust—as the one that was on fire disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Echidna glared at Naruto with pure rage. She looked as if she wanted to destroy the boy. But before she could there was rumbling outside.

"You're lucky Zeus fears the demon sealed inside you boy, otherwise you would be dead," Echidna said. "But since your friend has no chance of surviving, my job is done but I will get you back."

Echidna turned into flash fire before disappearing.

"Naruto! Percy's badly hurt," Annabeth yelled.

Naruto rushed over to his friend. Percy was sickly pale and where the snake bit him was turning green from poison.

"We need to get him in the river," Annabeth said, "If creek water can heal his wounds, maybe a larger source of water can remove the poison."

Naruto and Grover were skeptical but they didn't suggest any better ideas.

"Grover, take Percy out of here and drop him in the water," Naruto said. "Hopefully Poseidon's blood will prevent Percy to drown."

Grover nodded reluctantly. He picked up Percy, shouted 'Maia' and flew out of the hole.

"Naruto what did Echidna meant back there," Annabeth said, "About the demon inside you?"

Naruto's heart sank. He forgotten that Echidna blabbed off about his secret in front of his friends.

A that point, the Park ranger manage to open the emergency doors and he and the family got out of there. Naruto had a feeling that if they went down there, the authorities would be down there waiting for them. Naruto was already in trouble due to the Mist and the Bus accident—along with Percy—and he doubt he would be in any less trouble now.

"Tell you later," Naruto said, "We need to get out of here. So hold on!"

"Hold on—wah! Naruto what are you doing?" Annabeth screamed as Naruto picked her up and carried her bridal style.

Naruto didn't respond as he walked straight to the hole from the battle.

"Oh no! Not that way! Can't we just take the elevator!" Annabeth screamed before Naruto jumped off the archway with.

Annabeth screamed and closed her eyes as the wind whipped against her face until suddenly it stopped. At first she was confused until she opened her eyes and saw that Naruto had somehow stuck his feet to the side of the arch way and was now walking down it with a big goofy grin on his face.

"Naruto, you jerk!" Annabeth responded.

"Sorry, I couldn't help it," Naruto laughed, "You should have seen your face though."

Annabeth was fuming mad, mostly at Naruto, but somewhat at herself for falling for it. Of course Naruto would walk down the arch. It been obvious since the quest started the Mist covered up Naruto's ninja tricks—somewhat, but still it was recklace.

When they got safely to the ground Annabeth slapped Naruto.

"That's for scaring me to death!" Annabeth snapped, "Now come on! We better go find Grover and Percy."

Naruto rubbed his cheek which was bright red as he followed her. But not before hearing a news reporter:

"Channel five has learned that surveillance cameras showed four adolescent children going wild on the observation deck, somehow setting off freak explosions. Hard to believe, John, but that's what we're hearing."

Naruto didn't need to know who they were talking about to know he and his friends were in deep trouble as he though, _Percy won't be happy about that._

…

They found Grover waiting at the river side as Percy seem to finally came out of the riverside.

"Anything yet?" Annabeth asked.

Grover shook his head. "Not yet. He has been in there for a few minutes. How did you two get down?"

"I carried Annabeth down the side of the arch," Naruto said.

Just then Percy surfaced and began walking out of the water completely dry. Annabeth and Grover greeted him with a hug and Naruto gave him a high five.

"Gangway!" they heard a cop yelled.

The crowd near them parted as a couple of paremedics hustled out, rolling a the mother from the arch. She was saying. "And then this huge dog, this hug fire breathing Chihuahua—"

"Okay, ma'am," the paramedic said. "Just calm down. Your family is fine. The medication is starting to kick in."

"I'm not crazy! One boy destroyed the monster and two more flew out of the hole."

At this point Annabeth Percy Grover and Naruto disappeared in the crowd. They passed some reporters that was doing a breaking new, "Percy Jackson and Naruto Uzumaki. That's right, Dan. Channel Twelve has learned that the two boys that might took part in this explosion fits the description of the two young men wanted by authorities for a serious New Jersey bus accident three days ago. _And_ the boys is believed and two more accomplices are believed to be traveling west. For our viewers at home, here is a photo.

They quickly got out of there. It wasn't until they were back to the Amtrak station Percy told them about some strange under water lady and her message.

"Whoa," said Grover. "We've got to get you Santa Monica! You can't ignore a summons from your dad."

"At least we made it to the Amtrak," Naruto said.

"Right, but one of these days I'm going to find out what Echidna meant," Annabeth warned Naruto.

"What is she talking about?" Percy asked.

"A long story," Naruto replied.


	16. The God of War is a Jerk

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next chapter there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

I don't own Percy Jackson series or Naruto series, or any of the characters of either series.

* * *

 **The God of War is a Jerk**

The train rolled into Denver on June Fourteenth, giving the three demigods and satyr a week until their deadline. No one have eaten since the night before since Naruto's trust funds was still being blocked out due to the investigation on him and Percy. Not to mention none of them had a decent shower since Camp Half-Blood which came to be noticeable. Especially since Naruto had to aboard the Amtrack covered in Monster dust from destroying the Chimera from bellow.

The good news for Naruto and Grover was that they haven't had to hear Annabeth and Percy argue at each other since St. Louis. They learned the reason was that Percy and Annabeth made peace and agreed to work together while Naruto was reading the Gutsy Ninja and Grover took a nap.

"Let's try to contact Chiron," Annabeth said. "I want to tell him about your talk with the river spirit."

"I thought we can't use phones," Percy said.

"I'm not talking about phones," Annabeth said.

"Oh, I got to see this," Naruto responded.

They wandered through downtown for about half an hour looking for—well, Naruto and Percy didn't know what they were looking for. They were just following Annabeth who knew what they were looking for.

Compare to St. Louis humidity, Denver Colorado was hot and dry. Everywhere they turned, the Rocky Mountains seemed to be staring at them.

Finally they found an empty do-it-yourself car wash. They veered toward the stall farthest from the street, keeping their eyes open for patrol car. Mostly because Annabeth figured they were all wanted by now, but partly because it would be suspicious that four adolescents were hanging out at the car wash without a car.

"Gee Annabeth, I know we smell, but is this necessary?" Naruto joked.

"Shut up, Naruto," Annabeth grumbled.

"What exactly are we doing?" Percy asked

Grover took out the spray gun and grumbled. "It's seventy-five cents. I only got two quarters left. Annabeth?"

"Don't look at me," she said. "The dining car wiped me out."

Naruto and Percy fished out their change, which combine had five quarters, six nickles and a dime (mostly from Naruto's end). Naruto still had his backpack despite all the battles they went through, but since he left camp thinking he can use his trust fund, the change he did have was actually what he saved from his portion of the reward money.

"Naruto, how is it you have more change than the rest of us when you're suppose to be broke?" Percy asked.

Naruto shrugged. "I tried to save what I got."

Grover took one of Naruto's quarters. "Excellent," Grover said. "We could do it with a spray bottle, of course, but the connection isn't as good, and my arm gets tired of pumping."

"What are you talking about?" Naruto asked.

Grover fed the quarter and set the knob to FINE MIST. "I-M'ing."

"Instant messaging?" Percy asked.

" _Iris_ -messaging," Annabeth corrected.

"Iris—as in the goddess of rainbows?" Naruto asked.

Annabeth nodded, "She also carries messages for the gods, sort of like Hermes, but Iris' way is more face-to-face with who you want to deliver the message to," Annabeth replied.

"Face to face?" Percy and Naruto asked.

"The point is, if you know how to ask, and she's not too busy, she'll do the same for half-bloods," Annabeth stated.

"You're going to summon the goddess with a spray gun?" Percy asked.

Grover pointed the nozzle in the air and water hissed out in a thick white mist. "Unless you know an easier way to make a rainbow."

Sure enough, late afternoon light flickered through the vapor and broke into colors.

Annabeth held her palm out to Naruto. "Drachma, please."

Naruto pulled off his backpack and dug through it until he pulled out one of the drachmas he got from camp and handed it to Annabeth

She raised the coin over her head. "O goddess, accept our offering."

She threw the drachma into the rainbow. It disappeared in a golden shimmer.

"Half-Blood Hill," Annabeth requested.

It didn't take the mist long to form an image of the strawberry fields with the Long Island Sound in the distance. They weemed to be on the porch of the Big House. Standing there with his back turn to them was a sandy-haired guy in shorts and an orange tank top. He was holding a bronze sword and seemed to be staring intently at something down in the meadow.

"Hey Uncle Luke!" Naruto yelled knowing that would get the guy's attention."

He turned, eyes wide. The mist made it looked as if he was three feet in front of them.

"Percy! Naruto!" His scarred face broke into a grin. "Is that Annabeth, too? Thank the gods! Are you guys okay?"

"We're… uh… fine," Annabeth stammered as she started trying to straightening her dirty T-shirt and comb the loose hair our of her face. "We thought—Chiron—I mean—"

"He's down at the cabins." Luke's smile faded. "We're having some issues with the campers. Listen, is everything cool with you? Is Grover all right?"

"I'm right here," Grover called. He struggled in order to position of the hose so he appeared.

"Maybe I should help, Grover," Naruto offered.

"I got it,"

Just then a big Lincoln Continental pulled into the car wash with its stereo turned to maximum hip-hop. As the car slid into the next stall, the bass from the subwoofers vibrated so much, it shook the pavement.

"What's that noise?" Luke yelled

"I'll take care of it," Annabeth said.

"No, I will," Naruto said.

The owner of the car and his buddies were young men in their twenties. They didn't look much like troublemakers, but if there were laws against disturbing the peace, Naruto would guess that their music was so loud they might as well be breaking them.

"Excuse me!" Naruto yelled as he walked up to the driver who stepped out of the car. "Could you turn down your music?"

The guy looked at Naruto and sneered at him. "Get lost kid," he said shoving Naruto out of the way. Good thing no one else was there, otherwise they would have created a scene.

"I will ask again, please turn the music down," Naruto said as the driver stopped and turn to look at Naruto. When he did, his buddy got out of the car.

"Hey, what's the hold up?" he asked.

"Some snot nose runt doesn't know when to keep his nose out of other people business. I said get lost you little punk."

"Only when you turn down that music," Naruto said flatly.

The driver growled as his friend walked next to him. "You're playing with fire, runt. I suggest you leave and stop bothering us," he said as he pulled out a swiss army knife. From his pocket as if that was intimidating.

"Suite yourself," Naruto made the hand sing.

"What are you?"

"Transform!"

…

Percy Luke Annabeth and Grover were talking about the quest when they heard Naruto. They turned to see only Naruto transforming back to normal as two men were on the ground out cold with bloody nose.

"What was that about?" Luke asked.

Annabeth Percy and Grover didn't know how to answer as Naruto turned down the music.

"Uh, Luke, it looks like we might have to go," Percy said.

"Okay. Take care of yourself out there in Denver. Tell Naruto to continue making Cabin Eleven proud," Luke said. "And Grover, don't worry! No one would be turn to a pine tree this time."

They said their goodbyes before Grover swiped at the mist, dissconnecting the message.

"Hey guys! Did I miss anything?" Naruto asked.

"Naruto, what did you do?" Annabeth asked.

"Oh don't worry. Hopefully the Mist will alter their memories to make them think they had a perverted dream," Naruto said, "Too be honest I was surprise my jutsu worked at all."

"Ah—you know what, I don't want to know," Annabeth said. "Come on, let's find some dinner."

…

A few minutes later, they were sitting at a booth in a gleaming chrome diner. All around them, families were eating burgers and drinking malts and sodas.

Finally the waitress came over. She raised her eyebrow skeptically. "Well?"

"We, um, want to order dinner," Percy said.

"You kids have money to pay for it?"

Grover's lower lip quivered. Annabeth looked ready to pass out from hunger and Naruto was eyeing the menu for food he wish he had his money to pay for.

Suddenly there was a rumble shook the whole building: a motorcycle the size of a baby elephant had pulled up to the curb.

All conversation in the diner stopped. The motorcycle's headlight glared red. Its gas tank had flames painted on it, and a shotgun holster riveted to either side, complete with shotguns. The seat was leather—but the leather looked like… well, Caucasian human skin.

The guy on the bike would've made a pro wrestler run for Mama. He was dressed in a red muscle shirt and black jeans and a black leather duster, with a hunting knige strapped to his thigh. He wore red wraparound shades, and he had the cruelest and brutal face with an oil black crew cut and cheeks that were scarred from many, many fights.

As he walked into the diner, a hot, dry wind blew through the place. All the people rose, as if they were hypnotized, but the biker waved his hand dismissively and they all sat down again. Everybody went back to their conversations. The waitress blinked and asked again, "You kids have money to pay for it."

The biker said, "It's on me." He slid into their booth, which was way too mall for him and crowded Annabeth and Grover together where they barely have any elbow room between the two of them and the Biker.

He looked up at the waitress, who was gaping at him, and said, "Are you still here?"

He pointed at her, and she stiffened. She turned as if she'd been spun around, then marched back toward the kitchen.

The Biker turned to Percy and Naruto. The boys immediately had a boiling feelings of anger, resentment, and bitterness. The biker gave them a wicked grin. "So you're old Seaweed's kid, and old wise mouth and messenger's jinchuriki grandson."

Naruto glared at the man to the fact his eyes flickered between gray-blue to red with fox-like slits. Naruto quickly realized the feelings he was having was coming from this guy as well as who this guy was. Percy on other hand asked disrespectfully: "What's it to you?"

Annabeth flashed Percy a warning. "Percy, this is—"

The biker raised his hand.

"S'okay," he said. "I don't mind a little attitude. Long as you remember who's the boss. You know who I am, right little cousin?"

That's when it dawn to Percy who the guy was. "You're Clarisse's dad," he said. "Ares, god of war."

"So you're war girl's dad," Naruto said.

Ares grinned and took off his shades. Where his eyes should've been, there was only fire, empty sockets glowing with miniature nuclear explosions. "That's right, punks. And I heard you"—he pointed at Percy—"broke Clarisse's spear."

"She was asking for it."

"Probably. That's cool. I don't fight my kids' fights, you know? What I'm here for—I heard you were in town. I got a little proposition for you."

The waitress came backwith heaping trays of food—cheeseburgers, fries, onion rings, and chocolate shakes.

Ares handed her a few gold drachmas.

She looked nervously at the coins. "But, these aren't…"

Ares pull out his huge knife and started cleaning his fingernails with it. "Problem, sweetheart?"

The waitress swallowed, then left with the gold.

"You can't do that," Percy told Ares. "You can't just threaten people with a knife."

Ares laughed. "Are you kidding? I love this country. Best place since Sparta—well second best after the Village Hidden in the Stone and Mist in the Elemental nations. There they really knew how to train their ninjas. I even had some infamous kids there. Heck one even became one of the most powerful swordsmen of his village. A shame he went down the way he did at that bridge, in the Land of Waves. He had potential, especially with his sword," Ares continued.

At first Naruto frowned before his eyes widened with realization. "Zabuza Momochi? He was your son?"

"Yep!" Ares grinned. "You met him?"

"Met him, I fought him," Naruto responded. "My teammates were on a escort and protection mission for a guy Zabuza was suppose to kill at the Land of Waves."

"Really, well. Your squad must have been really lucky, or really good," Ares said. "Anyways, I got a proposition for you and your friend. I need you to do me a favor."

"What favor could we do for a god?" Percy asked.

"Something a god doesn't have time to do himself. It's nothing much. I left my shield at an abandoned water park here in town. Was going a little… date with my girlfriend. We were interrupted. I left my shield behind. I want you to fetch it for me."

"Why don't you go back and get it yourself?"

The fire in Ares' eye sockets glowed a little hotter.

"Why don't I turn you into a prarie dog and run you ove with my Harley? Because I don't feel like it. A god is giving you an opportunity to prove yourself, Percy Jackson. Will you prove yourself a coward?" He leaned forward. "Or maybe you only fight when there's a river to dive into, so your daddy can protect you."

Percy clutched his fist but knew Ares' power was causing his Anger.

"We're not interested," Percy said. "We've already got a quest."

Ares' fiery eyes showed blood and smoke and corpses on the battle field. "I know all about your quest, punk. When that _item_ was first stolen, Zeus sent his best out looking for it: Apollo, Athena, Artemis, and me, naturally. If I couldn't sniff out a weapon that powerful…" He licked his lips, as if the very thought of the master bolt made him hungry. "Well… if I couldn't find it, you got no help. Even with a puny shinobi legacy."

"Hey!" Naruto responded.

"Nevertheless, I'm trying to give you the benefit of the doubt. Your dad and I go way back. After all, I'm the one who told im my suspicions about old Corpse Breath."

"You told him Hades stole the bolt?" Naruto asked.

"Sure. Framoning somebody to start a war. Oldest trick in the book. I recognized it immediately. In a way you got me to thank for your little quest."

"Thanks," Percy grumbled.

"Hey, I'm a generous guy."

Naruto rolled his eyes. Ares didn't seem to notic as he continued. "Just do my little job, and I'll help you on your way. I'll arrange a ride west for you and your little friends."

"We're doing fine on our own," Percy argued.

"Percy, have you forgotten we have no transportation, and you Annabeth Grover don't backpacks?" Naruto asked. "Not to mention due to you-know-what, I don't have access to my trust fund."

"Not to mention you have no clue what you're up against," Ares stated. "Help me out, and maybe I'll tell you something you need to know. Something about your mom."

"My mom?"

Naruto scowled at Ares. If Percy had one huge weakness in this quest, it's his mother. It was no secret that Percy still wants to save his mother and Naruto been trying to keep his eye on his friend to make sure he doesn't do anything that ruin the mission.

Ares grinned. "That got your attention. The water park is a mile west on Delancy. You can't miss it. Look for the Tunnel of Love ride."

"What interrupted your date?" Percy asked. "Something scared you off?"

Ares bared his teeth in a threatening look that Naruto and Percy recognized from Clarisse. But at the same time, Ares looked nervous. Then it dawn to Naruto.

"After all this time, your brother setting up traps for your dates," Naruto said.

Ares eyes blazed. "You're lucky you won the favoritism of most of Olympus and that that Zeus fears the monster in you, boy. Otherwise you would have been dead a long time ago. But one of these days, that luck will wear out. Keep that in mind."

Naruto glared even harder at the war god as he continued. "I'll meet you back jere when you're done. Don't disappoint me."

After that Naruto and Percy passed out just long enough for Ares to disappeared because when they woke up the war god was no longer there and the motorcycle was gone.

"Not good," Grover said. "Ares sought you out, Percy. This is not good."

"Well, I for one now believe what he said about Zabuza being his son," Naruto said. "With an exception of the nuclear eyes, Ares glare match's exactly like Zabuza's."

"Who is Zabuza?" Annabeth asked, "And why did Ares said you were lucky to be alive if you faced him?"

"Long story," Naruto replied.

"The request is probably some kind of trick," Percy said. "Forget Ares. Let's just go."

"But first I finish this cheeseburger," Naruto said grabbing his burger causing his friends stared at him. "What? Ares maybe a pain, but I'm not going to pass on food. Besides, it's not like Ares made these himself."

No one argued against it, plus they were hungry.

"We can't avoid Ares' request, Percy," Annabeth said. "I don't like it any better than you, but to ignore the gods causes nothing but bad fortune, and in this quest, that's the least we need."

"Fine," Percy mumbled. "But why does he need us?"

"Maybe it's a problem that requires brains," Annabeth said. "Ares has strength. That's all he has. Even strength has to bow to wisdom sometimes."

Naruto thought about the message back during the Chuunin exam. "Heh, it makes sense."

"What?" Percy asked.

"Nothing, just something from my past," Naruto responded. "Too be honest I'm a bit curious to see the contraction used to scare Ares though but at the same time I hope it's not active."

"What makes you think it's a machine?" Percy asked.

Annabeth and Grover shook their head in disbelief. Obviously Percy was the only one who haven't figured it out.

…

The sun was sinking behind the mountains by time they found the water park. Judging from the sign, it once had been called WATERLAND, but now some of the letters were smashed out, so it read WAT R A D.

The main gate was padlocked and topped ith barb wire. Inside, huge dry waterslides and tubes and pipes curled everywhere, leading to empty pools. Old tickets and advertisements fluttered around the aphalt. It looked sad and creepy with the sunsetting.

"If Ares bring his girlfriend here for a date," Percy said, staring up at the barbed wire, "I hate to see what she looked like."

Naruto held back a snicker at his friend's ignorance.

"Percy," Annabeth warned. "Be more respectful."

"Why?"

"Because his girlfriend is very tempermental."

"You don't want to insult her looks," Grover added.

"Who is she?" Percy asked. "Echidna?"

"No, Aphrodite," Grover said, a little dreamily. "The Goddess of love."

"Isn't she married," Percy asked. "Hephaestus."

"Your point?" Grover asked.

"Oh…" Percy responded finally getting the idea. "so how do we get in

 _"Maia!"_ Grover's shoes sprouted wings.

He flew over the fence, did an un intended somersaulkt in midair, then stumbled to a landing on the opposite side. He dusted off his jeans, as if he planned the whole thing. "You guys coming?"

Annabeth and Percy were about to start climbing when Naruto stopped them. "Hold on guys, I want to try something."

Naruto walked over to the pad lock, kneeled down, touched the lock with his hands, closed his eyes and concentrated. After a few seconds, Naruto felt a tingling sensation in his hands as he could sense the internal pins that controlled the lock. Naruto concentrated harder until he heard the pins click. Naruto grabbed the lock and pull down, and sure enough it came out and Naruto undid it with the chains.

When he was done Naruto turned to Percy and Annabeth, who were surprised at what just happed as Naruto did a bow. Even Grover was shock.

"Naruto—how did you know you could do that?" Annabeth asked.

"I didn't, but I just had a gut feeling that I could since Hermes is the god of thieves," Naruto said, "Why? Isn't that a power of Hermes' kids?"

"It is, but it's a rare gift among Hermes kids," Annabeth said. "For instance, Luke has that power but the Stoll Brothers don't."

"Sweet!" Naruto said tossing the lock in the air and caught it.

"Either way, that was cool," Percy said.

"Well, come on!" Naruto said, "We better go inside before someone notice us."

They nodded as they push the gate in and head in. They closed the gate, hoping no one wouldn't notice the missing chain and padlock.

The shadows grew long as they walked through the park, checking out the attractions. Naruto had a good laugh at some of the names: Ankle Biter Island, Head Over Wedgie, and Where's My Swimsuit?

They found a souvenir shop that had been left open. Merchandise still lined the shelves: snow globes, pencils, postcards, and racks of—

"Clothes," Annabeth said. "Fresh clothes."

"Yeah," I said. "But you can't just—"

"Watch me."

She snatch an entire row of stuff of racks and disappeared into the changing room. A few minutes later she came out in Waterland flower print shorts, a big red Waterland T-shirt, and commemorative Waterland surf shoes. A Waterland backpack was slung over her shoulder, obviously stuffed with more goodies.

"What the heck." Grover said. Soon enough all four of them were decked out like walking advertisemtne for the defunct theme park. Even Naruto changed into some of it since the clothes he brought on the trip were used and dirty. Once they were done they continued searching for the Tunnel of Love.

"So Ares and Aphrodite," Percy said, trying to keep his mind off the growing dark, "they have a thing going?"

"That's old gossip, Percy," Annabeth responded. "Three-thousand-year-old gossip."

"What about Aphrodite's husband?"

"Well, you know," she said. "Hephaestus. The blacksmith. He was crippled when he was a baby, thrown off Mount Olympus by Zeus."

"I thought it was by Hera," Naruto said.

"The story differs, Naruto," Annabeth responded. "Anyways, cause of it, Hephaestus isn't exactly handsome. Clever with his hands, and all, but Aphrodite isn't into brains and talents."

"She likes bikers," Percy said.

"Whatever."

"Does Hephaestus know?"

"Oh, yeah, he knows," Naruto chuckled.

"He caught them together once," Annabeth explained, "I mean, litterally them, in a golden net, and invited all the gods to come and laugh at them. Hephaestus is always trying to embarrassed them."

"So when did Hephaestus started having kids with mortal women?" Naruto asked. "I mean, if he's still pulling together traps for Aphrodite and Ares for cheating on him all those eons ago, and yet he has kids with mortal women."

"Well, the story goes after the first trap, Hephaestus started having children with other women and goddesses, but I think he still holds a grudge against his wife and brother," Annabeth said, "That's why Ares and Aphrodite would meet in out-of-the-way places, like…"

She stopped, looking straight ahead. "Like that."

In front of them was an empty pool that was at least fifty yards across and shaped like a bowl. Around the rim, a dozen bronze statues of Cupid stood guard with wings spread and bows ready to fire. On the opposite side from them, a tunnel opened up, probably where the water flowed into the pool was full. The sign above it read, THRILL RIDE O' LOVE: THIS IS NOT YOUR PARENTS' TUNEL OF LOVE!

Grover crept toard the edge. "Guys, look."

Marooned at the bottom of the pool was a pink-and-white two-seater boat with a canopy over the top and little hearts painted all over it. The left seat, glinting in the fading light, was Ares' shield, a polished circle of bronze.

"This is too easy," Percy said.

"It can't be that easy," Naruto said, "I'm going to look around and see if I can find any signs of Hephaestus Trap."

With that Naruto headed off to investigate the pool.

Annabeth ran her fingers along the base of the nearest Cupid statue.

"There's a Greek letter carved here," she said. "Eta. I wonder…"

"Grover," Percy said. "you smell any monsters?"

He sniffed the wind. "Nothing."

"Nothing—like, in-the-Arch-and-you-didn't-smell-Echidna nothing, or really nothing?"

Grover looked hurt. "I told you, that was underground."

"Okay, I'm sorry." Percy took a deep breath. "I'm going down there."

"I'll go with you." Grover wasn't very enthusiastic, but Percy guess it was his way to make up for not being able to tell Echidna was a monster.

"No," Percy told him. "I want you to stay up top with the flying shoes. You're the Red Baron, a flying ace remember? I'm counting on you and Naruto with his ninja skills for backup incase something goes wrong."

Grover puffed his chest a little. "Sure. But what could go wrong?"

"I don't know. Just a feeling," Percy replied. "Annabeth come with me—"

"Are you kidding?" She looked at Percy as if he'd just dropped from the moon. Her cheeks were bright red.

"What's the problem now?" Percy demanded.

"Me, go with you to the… the 'Thrill Ride of Love'? How embarrassing is that? What if somebody saw me?"

"Who's going to see you?" But Percy was blushing now too. "Fine," he told her. "I'll do it myself." But when he started down the side of the pool, Annabeth followed him, muttereing about how boys always messed things up.

Meanwhile Naruto was investigating the controls and found nothing. He was about to give up when when something caught his eye: a golden wire.

"A trip wire," Naruto said. "Could this be the trigger?"

Just then he heard grinding sounds of a million gears. Naruto looked and saw that the Cupid statues were drawing their bows from the edges and fire arrows. They laned at the other end with silky cables attack. Then smaller metallic threads started weaving together magiacally between the main strands, making a net.

Naruto rushed over to Grover who was trying to help Percy and Annabeth by opening a section of the net. But when he touched it, the golden threas started to wrap aroun his hands.

"What happened?" Naruto yelled.

"Percy trigger the trap when he picked up Ares' shield," Annabeth said.

"It wasn't my fault! There was a trip wire attached," Percy yelled.

Naruto whistled. "Hephaestus must have planned this incase Ares went back for his shield. I'm quite impress."

"Naruto, this is not the time to be impress!" Annabeth yelled.

The Cupids' heads popped open. Out came a video cameras. Spotlights rose up all around the pool, blinding Percy and Annabeth, and a loudspeaker voice boomed: "Light to Olympus in one minute… Fifty-nine seconds, fifty eight."

"Great! Now we're going to be broadcast live to Olympus and look like absolutely fools!" Annabeth screamed.

"Hold on." Naruto took out a celestial bronze kunai from his pouch and started trying to cut the wires.

That's when a row of mirrors opened like hatches and thousands of tiny eight leged metallic spider poured out in a wave of clacking, whirling metal.

"Spiders!" Annabeth screamed. "Sp—sp—aaah!"

Naruto was also reminded of his old fear of spiders as his hands started trembling.

"Naruto, you okay? You need me to take over?" Grover asked.

"N-no, I'm okay," Naruto responded as thought, _Get a hold of yourself, your friends need you!_

Naruto sharpened his kunai with wind chakra as best as he could using what he learned about wind chakra from his grandparent's scrolls.

Meanwhile Percy had to pull Annabeth up and dragged her back toward the boat.

The metallic spsiders were coming out from all around the rim, millions of them, flooding toward the center of the pool and surrounded them.

Percy manage to get himself and Annabeth on the boat. Percy started kicking the spiders as they swarmed the aboard.

"Annabeth help!" Percy yelled.

Annabeth only responded with a scream while being paralyzed in fear.

"Percy! Annabeth is terrified of spiders! You'll have to deal with them yourself for now!" Naruto yelled.

Percy looked up at his blonde-ninja-friend and saw that Naruto was trying to cut through the threads while his hands were trembling slightly. He guessed that Naruto must have had the same fear as Annabeth, only difference was that Naruto seemed to have overcome it enough to help with the situation.

"Thirty, twenty-nine," called the loudspeaker.

The spiders started spitting out strands of metal threads, trying to tie Percy and Annabeth down. The strands were easy for Percy to break at first, but they were so many of them caused by so many spiders coming that Percy couldn't stop them alone. Percy kicked one away from Annabeth's leg and its pincers took a chunk out of his new surf shoe.

"Fifteen, Fourteen," the loudspeaker called.

"We get it!" Naruto growled. "No good, even if I cut through, those metallic spiders could still be a be a problem."

"Grover go to the booth and find the on switch!" Percy yelled.

"What?"

Naruto caught onto Percy's plan. "Percy, it's no good! The controls are disable."

"Five, four—"

Percy started muttering incoherent words. He then closed his eyes as if he was focusing.

"Two, one, _zero_!"

Water exploded out of the pipes. It roared into the pool sweeping. Percy went from struggling against spiders to keeping Annabeth and himself on the boat while preventing it from capsizing.

Naruto finally cut the ropes enough where people could get in and out. Naruto quickly created a shadow clone. "Keep the hole open!"

The clone nodded as Grover flew down to the pool. Naruto applied charkra to his feet and jumped through the hole and landed on top of the water before following Grover.

They found Percy and Annabeth just as they were thrown off their boats. Naruto jumped and grabbed Annabeth as Grover caught Percy. Grover flew to the asphault As Naruto landed on the water and jumoped over the gates and pool before landing on solid asphault.

Grover and Percy weren't so lucky as they crashed landed into the photoboard.

"You guys okay?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah—I think so," Percy said.

The cupids turned turned to the four of them along with the spotlights. Naruto got a bright idea.

He walked up to the nearest camera and did a bow like he was putting up a show and announced, "Thank you gods and goddesses of Olympus for watching. This broadcast is brought to you by Ares sending us to retrieve his shield. Remember, you got Ares to blame for not warning us about Hephaestus' Trap. Good night Olympus!"

The cameras stopped rolling as they retreated back into the statue and the spotlights went back to wherever they were before.

Percy and Grover lost it as they burst out laughing. Even Annabeth was having a hard time scolding at Naruto for what he just did as she was bitting her lip in order to not laugh.

"Come on guys, we better return the shield," Annabeth said once Percy and Grover stopped laughing. They left the park, still amused by Naruto's little stunt.

* * *

 **A/N:** The reason I think the Lock Manipulation power is a rare gift among Hermes' kids is because of how in the Titan's Curse say how the Stoll Brothers had to pick locks to get into the camp store. If they had the power to manipulate locks, they wouldn't need to pick them.


	17. Smuggled Animals & Enchanted Casinos

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next chapter there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

I don't own Percy Jackson series or Naruto series, or any of the characters of either series. Nor am I the writer of the Son of the Huntress series

For those who isn't aware, there is a poll on my profile that will involve 'The Legacy of Athena and Hermes & the Sea of Monsters'. I decided to have Hinata appear in that story as a camper, and the poll on my profile is for who you think should be her mother:

Aphrodite  
Demeter  
Hebe  
Iris  
Tyche

Whoever will be Hinata's mom would also be Hanabi's mom, but I don't plan to have Hanabi appear as a camper, at least not until I get to the Heroes of Olympus part of the series when even the Minor gods cabins are included. And NO there is no vote whether or not Hinata should become a camper.

No matter who Hinata's mom is, I will tell you Hinata will learn how to use a bow and arrow to go with her ninja weapons. Partly to increase her range, but mostly because the combination of the Byakugan and Hinata's Byakugan could be deadly to monsters.

* * *

 **Smuggled Animals & Enchanted Casinos**

Ares was waiting for the group in the diner parking lot.

"Well, well," he said. "You didn't get yourself killed."

"You knew it was a trap," Percy said.

Ares gave him a wicked grin. "Bet that crippled blacksmith was surprised when he netted a couple of stupid kids. You looked good on TV."

"Did it ever occurred to you that the reason Hephaestus keep setting up those traps is because of how you and your girlfriend treated him?" Naruto responded.

"Who cares? It's fun messing with ole Hephy when I'm lying on top of his wife," Ares said with a sick grin on his face, "Besides you got a whole new boost in popularity on Olympus with that stunt you pulled Legacy-Boy."

"I bet Athena and Poseidon didn't amusing of what happened," Naruto responded.

"You're a jerk," Percy said as he shoves the shield at Ares.

Ares grabbed the shield and spun it in the air like pizza dough. It changed form, melting into a bulletproof vest. He slung it across his back.

"See that truck over there?" He pointed to an eighteen-wheeler parked across the street from the diner. "That's your ride. Take you straight to L.A. with one stop in Vegas."

The eighteen-wheeler had a sign on the back reverse printed with white on black, which made it easy for Percy and Naruto to read: KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL: HUMANE ZOO TRANSPORT. WARNING: LIVE WILD ANIMALS.

"You're kidding," Percy responded.

Ares snapped his fingers. The back door of the truck unlatched. "Free ride west, punk. Stop complaining. And here's a little something for doing the job."

He slung a blue nylon backpack off his handlebars and tossed it to Percy.

Inside were fresh clothes for Percy Grover and Annabeth, twenty bucks in cash, a pouch full of golden drachmas, and a bag of Double Stuff Oreos.

Percy said, "I don't want your lousy—"

"Thank you, Lord Ares," Grover interrupted. "Thanks a lot."

Percy gritted his teeth as he reluctantly slung the backpack over his shoulder.

Naruto looked at the diner, which had only a couple of customers now. The waitress who'd served them was watching nervously out the window. Then she dragged the fry cook out from the kitchen to see. She said something to him. He nodded and held up a little disposable camera and snapped a picture of them.

Naruto groaned. With everything at the water park he forgot that he and his friends were wanted for the bus incident, the Gateway Arch explosion, _and_ the disappearance of Percy's mom. Which reminds Naruto of one more thing.

"You owe Percy one more thing," Naruto said. "You promised him information about his mom."

"Are you sure your friend can take it?" Ares asked.

"Just tell me," Percy said.

Ares kick-started his motorcycle. "She's not dead."

Percy was caught off guard by the news. "What do you mean?"

"I mean she was taken away from the Minotaur before she could die. She was turned into a shower of gold, right? That's metamorphosis. Not death. She's being kept."

"Kept. Why?"

"Hostages," Naruto said. "Someone takes somebody important to control who that person is important too or too gain what they really want."

Ares smirked. "Legacy-boy gets it."

"Nobody's controlling me," Percy argued.

Ares laughed. "Oh yeah? See you around, kid."

"Percy's right, Ares, you're a jerk. Your son, Zabuza, was a better person than you are as a god," Naruto said.

Behind Ares' glasses, fire glowed. "We'll meet again, Percy Jackson and Naruto Uzumaki. Next time you're in a fight, watch your back."

He revved his Harley, then roared off down Delancy Street.

Annabeth said, "That was not smart, you two."

"I don't care," Percy said.

"You don't want a god as your enemy. Especially not that god."

Naruto kept quiet as he looked down the street.

 _We'll meet again,_ Ares words echoed in his head.

Naruto couldn't help but shake this feeling that they would see Ares again, and he doubt the next time would be better than this time.

"Hey, guys," Grover said. "I hate to interrupt, but…"

He pointed toward the dinner. At the register, the last two customers were paying their check, two men in identical black coveralls with a white logo on their backs that matched the one on the KINDNESS INTERNATIONAL truck."

"If we're taking the zoo express," Grover said, "we need to hurry."

No one argued as they ran across the street and climbed in the back of the big rig, closing the doors behind them.

…

The first thing that hit the group was the smell of the world's biggest kitty litter.

At first the trailer was too dark to see inside, but Percy quickly took care of that problem when he uncapped his sword: Anaklusmos. The blade cast a bronze light over a very sad scene. Sitting in a row of filthy metal cages were three animals: a zebra, a male albino lion, and an antelope. Each of them obviously been mistreated.

The food been mismatched as the Lion had a sack of turnips and the Zebra and Antelope each have a Styrofoam tray of hamburger meat. The zebra's mane was matted with chewing gum, like somebody had been spitting on it on their spare time. The antelope had a silver birthday balloon tied to one of his horns that read OVER THE HILL!

The lion might as well had it worse over all. It seemed that no one wanted to get close to him since they got him. The poor thing was pacing around on soiled blankets, in a space way too small for him, panting from the stuffy heat of the trailer. He had flies buzzing around his pink eyes and his ribs showed through his white fur.

"This is kindness?" Grover yelled. "Humane zoo transport?"

He was about to head outside and beat up the truckers with his reed pipes, when the truck's engine roared to life, the trailer started shaking, and they were forced to sit down or fall down.

Percy and Annabeth huddled in the corner on some mildewed feed sacks, trying to ignore the smell and the heat and the flies. Grover tried to talk to the animals but they just stared at him sadly.

"We got to do something," Naruto said, "This is just pathetic.

"We can't free them now," Percy pointed out, "Not with the trailer moving."

"We can at least refill their water bowls," Annabeth said. "And switch out their food."

"I'll take care of the water, Percy you get the food," Naruto said, "Annabeth, see if you can do anything about the Balloon. I don't think we can do much for the Zebra with the gum while this trailer is shaking, but Grover, you think you can convince it and the others that we'll help them once it's safe."

"Yeah," Grover said.

They worked together to do just that.

While refilling the animals water bowls, Naruto couldn't help but think at all of the D-Rank missions he complained back in the leaf. Naruto smirked.

"What are you smirking about?" Percy asked handling the turnip sack with his sword after taking care of the lion.

"Just that I don't think I'm going to complain about taking care of house pets for Missions or chores for that matter ever again," Naruto said.

Percy laughed.

Once they were done they made plans to break the animals out when the truck stops at Vegas. Which really meant Naruto and his shadow clones will be using his lock manipulation ability to open the cages, and Grover will use some kind of blessing on the animals. After that they settle in for the night.

Annabeth Percy and Naruto ended up being grateful for the double stuff oreos as it gave them something to snack to celebrate that they were at least halfway to Los Angeles as Grover curled up on a turnip sack.

"Hey," Annabeth said, "I'm sorry for freaking out back at the water park, Percy."

"That's okay."

"It's just…" She shuddered. "Spiders."

"Really, it's okay," Percy said.

"Don't forget, Annabeth, Percy and I been best friends since we were in Yancy Academy together, so he knows about my fear of spiders," Naruto said, "In fact, if it wasn't for a mission I was on before I came to this world, I would have frozen up at the site of those mechanical spiders as well."

"What's with the fear of spiders?" Percy asked, "I get it has to do with Athena, but how?"

"Because of the story of Arachne right?" Naruto asked, "She got turned into a spider for challenging Athena to a weaving, contest right?"

Annabeth nodded. "Arachne's children have been taking revenge on children of Athena ever since. If there's a spider within a mile of me, it'll find me." She turned to Naruto. "I guess it's true for legacies of Athena as well."

Naruto shrugged. "I never thought much about it. I just know I was scared of them since I was a little."

"Oh," Annabeth said.

"Makes me glad there isn't a Tail Beast in a form of a spider," Naruto said to himself outloud.

"Tailed Beast?" Annabeth asked.

Naruto sweat dropped, "I said that out loud didn't I?"

"Yes you did," Percy said, "So what are the tailed beast?"

Naruto bit his lip trying to figure out how to get out of this.

"Naruto, just tell them," Grover said.

Naruto sighed. "Truth is, I have a very powerful monster sealed—a demon actually—inside me," Naruto said as he gripped his stomach where the seal was placed.

"A demon?" Annabeth asked.

"In the elemental nations there are nine demons completely made out of chakra each with a conscious, each of a form of a different animal, each with a different number of tails from between one to nine tails, each the size of a skyscraper, each with a unique ability, and most importantly each with the power to destroy a whole village."

"According to stories I heard, over the years, shinobies of my world tried to harness the demon's power either to save their village or to use their power to gain an advantage over their enemies. Eventually they discovered how to use a special kind of jutsu to seal these beast into a human vessel thus creating a Jinchuriki."

"And you're one of them?" Percy asked.

Naruto nodded, "Thirteen years ago one of the beast that had a form of a fox with nine-tails attacked my village. My dad—he tried to fight off the beast, but even he—one of the Hokages: The greatest ninjas of his village—couldn't defeat it. So he had no other choice but to seal it into a human."

"And he picked you?" Annabeth asked.

Naruto nodded. "From what I been told, he didn't have much of a choice. He couldn't force the decision on any other family. So he had no other choice but to seal it in me, but he did have hopes that I would master the demon's power."

"Is it possible?" Percy asked. "I mean for you to master it's power."

Naruto shrugged. "I'm not sure. But Mr. D told me himself he met a Jinchuriki from the Village Hidden in the Cloud that did master his Tailed Beast's chakra. And that guy had the eight tail bull, the second strongest beast after the Nine-tail Fox sealed inside me. The only problem was that the hidden cloud village had a secret place where the Jinchurikis of the village can train to master their tailed beast's power."

"Couldn't you go to that village and learn though?" Percy asked.

"Percy, it's not that simple," Annabeth said.

"She's right. The Cloud Village and the Leaf Village haven't been exactly on friendly terms. Especially after the kidnap-attempt the cloud village's ambassador tried to pull on the Hyuuga clan for their blood line during peace treaty negotiation," Naruto explained. "The ambassador died by a the leader of the clan: Hiashi Hyuuga's hands, and the cloud village denied that they knew anything about it and said that the ambassador was killed. If it wasn't for a sacrifice by Hiashi's twin brother: Hizashi."

"Wait how is a sacrifice of another Hyuuga settle the situation? Wouldn't the cloud village get what they were after?" Percy asked.

"It's not that simple," Naruto responded. "It's difficult to explain, I don't even completely understand, but the Hyuuga clan has a special seal that was supposed to protect the secrets of the Byakugan that then main family used on those that were born in the branch family class of their clan—the protectors of the main family. And because Hizashi was born minutes after his brother, he was put in the branch family."

Naruto clenched his fist, remembering the full story of the Bird Cage Seal Neji told him. But he wasn't about to tell his friends about the dark side of the purpose of the seal.

 _Something I planned to change if I ever get the chance,_ Naruto thought.

"Anyways, back to the Tailed beast," Naruto said. "I think the reason why Zeus hasn't destroyed me yet isn't about the fact I might be able to master the fox's power, but rather that it could be when I died the fox might be released into your world. Maybe not immediately, but perhaps like the monsters we have faced, where over time their chakra would reform into their mighty beast form."

"It would explain a lot," Annabeth said.

"I have a question though. If the fox is sealed inside you, does that mean you can use it's chakra?" Percy asked.

"Yeah—well sort of," Naruto said, "My seal is design to let small amounts of the Fox's power leak out and mix with my own chakra. But if I'm in extreme emotional distress like rage, I think I unconsciously tapped into more of the fox's power, and when that happens. Well, trust me, you'll know when that happens. And what's worse, if the seal is tampered to the point it breaks, the Fox would be released. Same goes with most Jinchurikis. That's why so many people feared Jinchurikis, some even will hate them they would forget the risk of what would happen when one dies to the point to try and kill one. What's worse is that it's possible for a Jinchuriki to lose control of their tailed beast power if they haven't mastered its power. So far I haven't reached that point, but I can't shake the feeling that there's a limit to how much power I can control, I just haven't reached it yet."

There was a moment of silence before Percy broke it.

"I don't care what others say," Percy said. "You're my best friend, Naruto. And I know you're not a threat."

"He's right," Annabeth said. "Besides, your dad is a child of Athena right? He must have planned ahead in case you reached those limits. There must be other safe guards to your seal to protect you until you master the fox's power."

"Yeah—maybe," Naruto said, "Truth is, I don't know very much about the seal placed on me other than what others told me. It's a constant reminder of what I don't know. My mom, my dad, the what happened the night I was born, and it annoys me to death," Naruto said, "Even after I came to this world, found out who my parents were and I had a family, I still can't shake off the fact that there's still so much I don't know."

Annabeth fingered her bead necklace, mostly the one with the pine tree. "Still, I wish my dad was like yours Naruto."

"Huh?" Naruto responded.

"Your dad cared for you and believed in you. My dad—he resented me since the day I was born," Annabeth said.

"Annabeth," Naruto responded.

"He never wanted a baby. When he got me, he asked Athena to take me back and raised me on Olympus because he was too busy with his work. He wasn't happy about that. She told him heroes had to be raised by their mortal parent."

"But how…" Percy said, "I mean, I guess you weren't born in a hospital…"

"I appeared on my dad's doorstep, in a golden cradle, carried down from Olympus by Zephyr the West wind. You think my dad would remember that as a miracle, right? Like, maybe he'd take some digital photos or something. But he always talked about my arrival as if it were the most inconvenient thing that had ever happened to him. When I was five he got married and totally forgot about Athena. He got a 'regular' mortal wife, and had two 'regular' mortal kids, and tried to pretend I didn't exist. What's worse, his wife—my stepmom—treated me like a freak. She wouldn't let me play with her children. My dad went along with her. Whenever something dangerous happened—you know, something with monsters—they would both look at me resentfully, like, 'How dare you put our family at risk.' Finally, I took the hint. I wasn't wanted. I ran away."

"Sorry Annabeth," Naruto said, "Here I am complaining about missing my parents who cared for me, when you had a tough childhood with your dad."

"It's okay," Annabeth said, "Besides, after I ran away, Athena watched over me, guided me toward Thalia and Luke."

"Wait! Then you and Luke were the two demigods that befriended Thalia," Percy responded.

"You now realize it, Percy?" Naruto asked.

"But then…" Percy said piecing it together. "Grover—were you—"

In the bronze light of Percy's blade, it was hard for Percy to read Grover's expression.

Grover let out a mournful bray.

"I should've told you the truth from the beginning." His voice trembled. "I thought if you knew what a failure I was, you wouldn't want me involved."

"Then it was you," Percy said.

Grover nodded glumly.

"I was supposed to escort Thalia to camp," he said, sniffling. "Only Thalia. I had strict orders from Chiron: don't do anything that would slow down the rescue. We knew Hades was after her, see, but I couldn't just leave Luke and Annabeth by themselves. I thought… I thought I could lead all three of them to safety. It was my fault the Kindly Ones caught up with us. I froze. I got scared on the way back to camp and took some wrong turns. If I'd just been a little quicker…"

"Stop it," Annabeth said. "No one blames you. Thalia didn't blame you either."

"She sacrificed herself to save us," he said miserably. "Her death was my fault. The Council of Cloven Elders said so."

"Then they're a bunch of idiots," Naruto said. "All of them."

"Uh, Naruto, one of them is Mr. D," Annabeth said.

"I don't care," Naruto said, "Those who abandon their friends—especially when they need help the most—are worse of the worse."

Naruto shot a look at Percy an he shrunk down knowing why. Back in the bus stop they abandoned Grover. Naruto didn't want to do it, but Percy pushed Naruto into it.

Grover was silent for a while before they realized he had fallen asleep.

"How does he do that?" Percy asked.

"I don't know," Annabeth said, "That was some advice though Naruto."

"Thanks, it was actually the first lesson I learned when I became a Genin," Naruto said.

They rode in silence for a few miles, bumping around on the feed sacks. The zebra munched a turnip. The lion licked the last of the hamburger meat off his lips and looked at Percy hopefully.

Annabeth rubbed her necklace like she was thinking deep, strategic thoughts.

"That pine-tree bead," Percy said. "Is that from your first year?"

Annabeth looked. She hadn't realize what she was doing.

"Yeah," she said. "Every August, the counselors picked the most important event of the summer, and they paint it on that year's beads. I've got Thalia's pine tree, a Greek trireme on fire, a centaur in a prom dress—now _that_ was a weird summer…"

"And the college ring is your father's?"

"That's none of your—" she stopped herself. "Yeah. Yeah, it is."

"You don't have to tell us," Naruto said.

"No… it's okay." She took a shaky breath. "My dad sent it to me folded up in a letter, two summers ago. The ring was, like, his main keepsake from Athena. He wouldn't have gotten through his doctoral program at Harvard without her… That's a long story. Anyway, he said he wanted me to have it. He apologized for being a jerk, said he loved me and missed me. He wanted me to come home and live with him."

"That doesn't sound so bad," Percy said.

"Yeah, well… the problem was, I believed him. I tried to go home for that school year, but my stepmom was the same as ever. She didn't want her kids put in danger by living with a freak. Monsters attacked. We argued. Monsters attacked. We argued. I didn't even make it through winter break. I called Chiron and came right back to Camp Half-Blood."

"You think you'll ever try living with your dad again?"

She wouldn't meat Percy's eyes. "Please. I'm not into self-inflicted pain."

"You shouldn't give up," Percy told her. "You should write him a letter or something."

"Thanks for the advice," Annabeth said coldly, "but my father made his choice about who he wants to live with."

"What about other relatives?" Naruto asked. "Don't your dad have siblings?"

"Yeah—a brother and sister actually," Annabeth said, "My uncle though is more into Norse Mythology—I think it's because my dad's ancestors are originally Sweden, and my aunt and her son—my cousin, Magnus are good people, but I haven't seen them since before I ran away."

"Norse Mythology?" Naruto asked, "You mean there are stories?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Naruto every country has their own beliefs. That doesn't mean they all exist."

"How would you know? Maybe they use some kind of Mist magic to keep themselves from the Olympians as well as from mortals," Naruto said.

"Naruto has a point," Percy said, "I mean before he came to our world, I don't think any of us would thought people like him existed—and I'm talking about you being a shinobi, Naruto."

Naruto nodded in understanding.

"Whatever," Annabeth said, "I'm going to sleep."

Annabeth curled up and fell asleep.

"You really believe what you said about there being other gods?" Percy asked Naruto.

"I'm not sure, but it would explain a lot why there are so many myths and religions in this world," Naruto explained, "And it might explain what Chiron meant about my world."

"You mean what Chiron said about that mortal who taught the people of your world how to use Chakra?" Percy asked.

Naruto nodded. "Come on Percy, we better get some sleep."

…

It took Percy and Naruto some time to fall asleep and when they did, Naruto expected to have the same dream as Percy, which Naruto came to accept that will happen. But instead he was in a familiar scene—a tunnel that resembles a sewer with a cage big enough to hold a full size house in front of it and a piece of paper on the two doors as if it was sealing the two shut.

On the other end was a huge fox laying there, watching Naruto.

"Naruto, You haven't talk to me since your grandparents brought you to this world and now you come to me," The fox said. "You are a mere speck of my hatred Naruto. You will never control my power."

"Shut up fox! I will control your power! Just you wait!" Naruto yelled.

"We'll see about that," the fox said. "But first, I sense your sea-friend needing you."

The dream shifted. Naruto was back in the dark cavern, spirits of the dead drifting around him. But unlike the previous scene, Naruto wasn't alone. Percy was there as well, listening to the monstrous voice in the darkness. Except it wasn't talking to Percy, or Naruto.

 _And he suspects nothing?_ it asked.

A familiar voice answered at their shoulders. _Nothing, my lord. Both of them are as ignorant as the rest._

Naruto looked over his shoulder, expecting to see the speaker, but he couldn't.

 _Deception upon deception,_ the thing in the pit mused. _Excellent_.

 _Truly, my lord,_ said the voice next to me, _you are well-named the Crooked One. But was it really necessary. I could have brought you what I stole directly—_

 _You?_ The monster said in a scorn. _You have already shown your limits. You would have failed me completely had I not intervened._

 _But, my lord—_

 _Peace, little servant. Our six months have brought up much. Zeus' anger has grown. Poseidon has played his desperate card. And Athena and Hermes has played a part by bringing the Nine-Tails to this world. Now we shall use it against them. Shortly you shall have the reward you wish, and your revenge. As soon as both items are delivered into my hands… but wait. They're here._

 _What?_ The invisible servant suddenly sounded tense. _You summon both of them, my lord?_

 _No._ The full force of the monster's attention was on Naruto and Percy. _The fox must have brought the boy here, but the other one—blast. It must be his father's blood—he is too changeable, too unpredictable. He must of brought himself hither._

 _Impossible!_ The servant cried.

 _For a weakling such as you, perhaps,_ the voice snarled. Then its cold power turned back to Naruto and Percy. _So you wish to dream of your quest, young half-bloods? Then I will oblige._

The scene changed.

Now Naruto and Percy were standing in a vast throne room with black marble walls and bronze floors. The empty, horrid throne made of human bones fused together. Standing at the foot of the dais was Sally Jackson, frozen in shimmering golden light, her arms stretched.

Percy tried to step forward and Naruto's eyes widened when his friend's hands were withering to bones. Grinning skeletons in Greek armor crowded around them, draping Percy with silk robes, wreathing Percy's head with laurels that smoked with Chimera poisoned others bow to Naruto in fear as if they didn't Naruto would destroy them.

The evil voice began to laugh. _Hail, the conquering hero! And the Jinchuriki of the Mighty Nine-Tail Fox._

…

Both Naruto and Percy woke with a start.

Grover and Annabeth were both trying to wake them by shaking their shoulders.

"The truck's stopped," he said. "We think they're coming to check on the animals."

"Hide!" Annabeth hissed.

Annabeth put on her magic cap and disappeared. Percy and Grover dive behind a feed sacks as Naruto dove into the shadows of some cages and hid there.

The trailer doors creaked open. Sunlight and heat poured in.

"Man!" one of the truckers said, waving his hand in front of his nose. "I wish I hauled appliances." He climbed inside and poured some water from a jug into the animals' dishes.

"You hot, big boy?" He asked the lion before splashing the rest of the bucket right in the lion's face.

The lion roared in indignation.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah," the man said before throwing a squashed-looking Happy meal bag at the antelope.

He then smirked at the Zebra. "How ya doin', Stripes? Least we'll be getting rid of _you_ this stop. You like magic shows? You're gonna love this one. They're gonna saw you in half.

The zebra, wild-eyed with fear, and look straight at Percy, as if talking to him.

Naruto had no clue what it was saying, but judging from Percy's expression, he might have.

 _Of course, Poseidon created horses,_ Naruto thought.

There was a loud _knock, knock, knock_ on the side of the trailer.

The trucker inside yelled, "What do you want Eddie?"

A voice outsides shouted back, "Maurice? What'd you say?"

"What are you banging for?"

Knock, knock, knock.

Outside, Eddie yelled, "What banging?"

The other guy, Maurice, rolled his eyes and went back outside to yell at Eddie for being an idiot.

Once it was safe Naruto came out just as Annabeth appeared next to Percy.

"This transport business can't be legal."

"No kidding," Grover said. He paused, as if listening. "The lion says these guys are animal smugglers. We got to save them?"

"Right! Time for Plan break out" Naruto said making the hand sign. "Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Two more Naruto's appeared before them and immediately they got to work on the locks. It took only seconds for animals to be free as Grover gave each animal some kind of blessing in goat talk.

Just as Maurice was poking his head back inside to check out the noise, the three animals leaped over him into the street. There was yelling and screaming and cars honking. Maurie and Eddie chased after them, only to get chased by policemen while at it. Many tourist screamed or backed off while taking pictures.

"What kind of blessing did you give them?" Naruto asked.

"A satyr's sanctuary," Grover replied. "It basically will protect them, help them find food, water, shade, and whatever they need until they find a safe place to live."

"Why can't you place a blessing like that on us?" Percy asked.

"It only works on wild animals."

"So it would only affect Percy," Annabeth reasoned.

"Hey!"

"Kidding," Annabeth said.

"Besides it probably be more affective on me," Naruto joked. "Come on guys, lets' get out of this filthy truck."

The group stumbled out into the desert afternoon. It was a hundred and ten degrees, easy, and they must've looked like deep-friend vagrants, but everyone was too interested in the wild animals to pay attention to them.

They passed the Monte Carlo and the MGM. They passed pyramids, a pirate ship, and the Statue of Liberty, which made Percy home sick

They weren't sure what they were looking for but any place out of the heat were good.

Naruto tried to guide them as best as he could with his natural sense, but it turns out, Hermes' powers only count for roads and paths, not so much in finding restaurants.

Eventually they found themselves standing in front of the Lotus Hotel and Casino. The entrance was a huge neon flower, the petals lighting up blinking. No one was going in or out, but the glittering chrome doors were open, spilling out air condition that smelled of lotus blossoms.

The doorman smiled at the group. "Hey, kids. You looked tired. You want to come in and sit down?"

At first they were skeptical about this. Who wouldn't be after what they went through. Naruto especially. The smell coming out of the casino reminded him of the Leaf Village.

"It couldn't hurt to check it out," Percy said. "I mean, we do have six days left."

"One day should be fine," Grover said getting a wary nod from Annabeth.

Naruto sighed. "Fine."

They headed inside and the first thing they said when they saw the place was, "Whoa."

The whole lobby was a giant game room. There was an indoor waterslide snaking around the glass elevator, which went straight up at least forty floors. There was a climbing wall on the side of one building, and an indoor bungee-jumping bridge. There were virtual reality suits with working laser guns. And hundreds of video games, each one the size of a widescreen TV. Basically, it had everything anyone could ask for. There were a few other kinds playing, but not many, so there was no lines for those waiting to play. There were waitresses and snack bars all around, serving every kind of food imagined.

"Hey!" a bellhop wearing a white-and-yellow Hawaiian shirt with lotus designs, shorts, and flip-flops. "Welcome to the Lotus Casino. Here's your room key."

"What?" Naruto said, "But we just got here, and we didn't pay for it."

"Oh don't worry," he said, laughing. "The bill's taken care of. No extra charges, no tips. Just go on up the top floor, room 4001. If you need anything, like extra bubbles for the hot tub, or skeet targets for the shooting range, or whatever, just call the front desk. Here are your LotusCash cards. They work in the restaurants and on all the games and rides."

He handed them each a green plastic credit card.

 _This makes no sense,_ Naruto thought.

Percy must have thought the same thing, because he asked, "How much is on here?"

His eyebrows knit together. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, when does it run out of cash?"

He laughed. "Oh, you're making a joke. Hey, that's cool. Enjoy your stay."

The bellhop hop left and Naruto looked suspiciously at the card.

Percy Annabeth and Grover looked at him skeptical but left anyways.

Naruto walked around the hotel, trying to find out more about it.

 _This place is too good to be true,_ Naruto thought, _There must be a catch to this place, but what?_

Naruto froze when he passed a restaurant and caught onto a familiar scent. He recognized the scent more than anything in the world, a smell he came to be well accustomed too, and one that brought happy memories to Naruto.

He turned toward the restaurant with a neon sign that was flashing: **_Godly Ichirakus_**.

 _No way,_ Naruto thought as he went inside.

Once inside, Naruto thought he was in some kind of dream. The place was very similar to Ichiraku back in the leaf, but bigger. There were tables scattered all over the place, with some people sitting around enjoying their meals. There was also a counter where people could sit on stools with an open window to the kitchen so they could see what the cooks were making.

Naruto took a seat at the counter, which was unoccupied, and didn't wait very long for a pretty looking waitress with long brunet hair that went down her back came up to him with a smile on her face. At first Naruto thought she was Ayame who served at the Ichiraku in the leaf, but then he noticed she had a lighter skin tone, and blue eyes.

"Hi there! May I take your order?" she asked in a kind voice.

"Um, sure. Could I have two bowls of Miso Ramen with everything on it, please?" Naruto asked.

The waitress nodded and scribbled it down.

"Anything else?" she asked.

Naruto shook his head. "That's all for now, but I do have a question for you?"

"If you're asking me out, I'm sorry, but I have policies against dating someone I just met, and no offense, but you're a little too young," the girl said.

"No, not that. It's just—there's a place like this back in the Elemental Nations called Ichiraku's Ramen. I was wondering if this place was based on that ramen stand?" He asked getting a surprise look from the waitress.

"Actually, yes it is. The owner of this restaurant is none other than Hebe: Goddess of Youth," she said getting a surprise look from Naruto. "Lady Hebe found the place during one of her visit, and fell in love with it. When she returned, she opened two of her own restaurants, one here in Lotus Casino, and a second one on Mount Olympus. Though the ramen here is not exactly like the one in the Elemental Nations, it is still pretty good," she said before she walked off to give."

Naruto sat there taking it in. The goddess Hebe had visited the leaf before, and been to Ichiraku's.

Now that Naruto thought about it, he remember meeting a lady with long black hair talking to Teuchi and Ayame one time when he came for his meal. He also remembered the lady treating him to ramen one time and when he asked why, she said: _"You reminded me of two of my siblings back home."_

 _If memory serves me right, Hebe is the daughter of Zeus and Hera, but wasn't an Olympian like Ares and Hephaestus. Which would make her Grandma Athena and Grandpa Hermes half sister,_ Naruto thought before smirking. "I met a relative of mine in the leaf and didn't even know it."

The waitress came back and gave him his two bowls of Ramen. She told him to enjoy before going to serve the other customers.

Naruto inspected everything in his ramen: the noodles, the beef, the fishcakes, even the soup itself. It all looked the same. Naruto then picked up his chopsticks and slowly took his first bite of ramen slowly.

When he did, his mind completely switched off. The ramen wasn't as good as the Ichiraku Ramen in the leaf, but it was close enough.

"THIS IS JUST LIKE ICHIRAKU'S RAMEN!" Naruto yelled before devouring his two bowls of ramen, and ordered more while at it.

It was an hour later before Naruto was full and paid for his thirty bowls of Ramen. Most were amazed yet disturbed by Naruto as many wondered where he put it all, and how is it he didn't look fat all. Needless to say, many were jealous.

Once he was done, Naruto decided to check out the hotel casino. Every now and then he found Annabeth Percy and Grover doing their own thing, which for Annabeth meant playing a 3D architect game, and Grover playing a game where the deer shoot the hunters. Percy was doing whatever seemed cool.

Naruto eventually found himself in the Hotel's gift shop checking out the merchandise. Naruto doubt he would find that beanie toy lightning bolt, but he figured since they still have five days to get the bolt and return it, he might as well get more stuff to do.

Naruto found a pack of playing cards. "Mythomagic?"

"You play the game?" someone asked.

Naruto turned to see a young boy who must have been ten years old. He had shaggy black hair and had an olive skin tone. His eyes were dark and looked as if they belong to a mad genius, but the boy smiled like he was like a normal child.

"No, is it a good game?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah! It's based off of Greek and Roman Mythology, except it gives the characters attack points hit points etch. There's also figurines. I got most of them, except for the really rare one," the boy said, "I'm Nico di Angelo, by the way."

"Naruto Uzumaki," Naruto said, "Nice to meet you."

"NICO DI ANGELO!" a voice shouted through the store, catching Naruto's and Nico's attention. When Nico saw who it was he paled a little.

Marching over to them was a girl a few years older than Nico, but had very similar features to him. She had long black hair covered by a green hat and olive skin tone.

 _Either this girl is Nico's sister, or I need my eyes check,_ Naruto thought.

"Nico, I have been looking for you for the past half an hour. You just ran off without telling me," she said in an annoyed tone. Then she turned to Naruto, "Sorry about my brother. My name is Bianca di Angelo."

"Hi, I'm Naruto," Naruto greeted. "And don't worry about it. Nico wasn't a problem. He was actually telling me about this Mythomagic game."

Bianca seemed disappointed by it, "Please tell me you're not into that game too."

"Well, no… this is actually the first time I heard of it," Naruto said. "But it sounds interesting—at least the Greek Mythology part."

"Whatever," Bianca said, "Come on Nico."

Nico reluctantly left with Bianca.

Naruto decided to buy a few packs of the Mythomagic game along with instructions to the game.

After Naruto left the store, Naruto noticed there were a lot more people than he remembered. He decided to go up in his room and take a shower, as he remembered that he haven't taken one yet.

The suite he was sharing with his friends and aunt was pretty amazing. There were four separate bedrooms and a bar stocked with candy sodas and chips. Although Naruto could guess that Percy and Grover had hit the minibar since there was a small mess next to a big screen television with and high speed internet. The towels were fluffy, and there were water beds with feather pillows. The balcony had its own hot tub, and sure enough, there was a skeet shooting machine and a shotgun, so you could launch clay pigeons right out over the Las Vegas skyline and plug them with your gun. Best part was that there was a closet full of fresh clothes.

Naruto took a quick shower and changed into a gray shirt, blue gray sleeveless hoody, and faded blue cargo pants he found in the closet.

Naruto decided to look out the balcony to get a good view of Las Vegas because, hey, when will you get a chance to see Las Vegas. At first Naruto thought it was sunset and which sounded about right since they got at the Casino around after noon, and being ADHD time flies by when you're having fun.

But then something felt wrong. Naruto's natural sense of direction kicked in and he realize that he was facing the East, where the sun was at. Naruto wasn't always good in school, but even he knew the sun sets in the west, which means what he was watching was sunrise.

To a normal person, they would regard this as the day going by faster than normal, nothing more. But Naruto knew immediately something was wrong. There was a storm system right over them with heat lightning flashing out in the desert.

"We got to get out of here," Naruto said. Naruto quickly created clones and gave each a scroll. "Seal what you can into these. We're leaving!"

As much as Naruto wanted to leave this stuff behind, he knew they were going to need more supplies than what Ares supplied them.

Once they were done, Naruto stuffed the scrolls into his bags and headed down the stairs to find his friends.

…

It didn't take long for Naruto to find Percy, and judging from his friends expression, Percy must have realized something was wrong.

"Naruto, this place—"

"Yeah, I know, we got to get out of here," Naruto said.

"Tell me about it, there's guys here who says they're from 1960s," Percy said.

"I kn—wait, the 1960s?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah. Why?"

Naruto muttered in Japanese Greek and a little Latin he manage to learn in Yancy. It now made sense to why there were more people than before.

"We need to get out of here _now_ ," Naruto said, "You go get Annabeth, I'll get Grover."

"What about our stuff?" Percy asked.

"I already got it along with other stuff for the road," Naruto said, "Go!"

Percy nodded and rushed off to find Annabeth.

…

Again, it didn't take long for Naruto to find Grover. All he had to do was listen for the shouts of, "DIE REDNECKS."

Grover was still playing that deer hunting hunter game.

"Grover!" Naruto shouted, but Grover seemed oblivious.

"Die, human! Die, silly polluting nasty person!"

"GROVER!" Naruto yelled even louder.

Finally the satyr turned around pointing the plastic gun at Naruto as if trying to shoot him.

"Come on, we're leaving!" Naruto grabbed Grover's arm as the satyr started strugging.

"No, just a bit longer. I'm teaching the red necks a lesson they will never forget," Grover declared before he started swinging at Naruto.

"Grover remember your dream. You can't find Pan if you're in here playing a virtual reality game," Naruto said.

That snapped Grover out of it. He froze and blinked before his eyes widened. "How long have we been here?"

"I don't know," Naruto said, "Last I saw it was sunrise, but after what Percy said, I think we been here longer. Either way, we need to get out of here."

…

They found Percy and Annabeth near the entrance. Annabeth looked annoyed that she gave into temptation so easily but Naruto couldn't help but raised his eyes brown when he saw Percy's face being red with some scratch marks.

"Next time you can get _your_ aunt," Percy said.

"Why? What happened?" Naruto asked.

Percy shot a glare at Annabeth. "She decided she didn't wanted to be taken away from her Sims game and decided to claw and slap my face when I tried to move her," Percy said with annoyance.

Annabeth laughed nervously while scratching the back of her head. "Sorry about that," she said, which reminded them of—well Naruto.

Percy couldn't help but stifle a laugh.

"Wow, vicious," Naruto said earning a playful slapped by Annabeth.

"Percy said you got our stuff?" Annabeth asked.

"Yeah, let's go," Naruto responded as he shouldered his backpack.

No one argued as they headed out.

The Lotus bellhop hurried up to them. "Well, now, are you ready for your platinum cards?"

"We're leaving," Percy said.

"Such a shame," he said. "We just added an entire floor of games for platinum-card members."

He tried to give them the cards, but Naruto swatted it away. "Let's go!"

They walked toward the door as fast as they could and didn't stop until they were at the sidewalk.

It felt afternoon, about the same time of day they'd gone into the casino, but the weather was worse than when Naruto saw the sunrise.

Percy ran to the nearest newspaper stand and read the year first which was the same year they entered the casino. But Percy's eyes widened when he saw the date.

"Guys, it's June twentieth," Percy said, "We've been in the Lotus Casino five days."

"That means?" Grover's eyes widened.

"We only have one day until the summer solstice," Naruto said, "One day to complete our quest."

"We need to get a taxi," Annabeth said, " _Now_."


	18. Shopping for Water Beds in a Bad Place

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next chapter there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

I don't own Percy Jackson series or Naruto series, or any of the characters of either series. Nor am I the writer of the Son of the Huntress series

I'm going to remind you guys this once: If you already decided who should Hinata's mom, you can vote on the poll. Here's the results from the Poll so far:

Aphrodite: 9  
Iris: 7  
Hebe: 6  
Demeter: 4  
Tyche: 4

I'm not going to include those who voted through reviews since I don't know who have already voted on the poll and I could be doubling some people's votes.

Also, I didn't Nemesis and removed Nike from the poll before anyone could vote for her because the personality of their kids don't matches Hinata, and I removed Hecate since Hinata would have to betray Hecate if Hecate was her mother to help Percy while Hecate and her claimed kids sided with the Titans during the second Titan war

* * *

 **Shopping for Water Beds in a Bad Place**

Naruto Percy and Grover thought Annabeth was kidding when she recommended a taxi cab, but she loaded the three of them and herself in the back of a taxi as if they actually had money, and told the driver, "Los Angeles, please."

The cabbie chewed his cigar and sized the group up. "That's three hundred miles. For that, you gotta pay up front for that."

"You accept casino debit cards?" Annabeth asked.

He shrugged. "Some of 'em. Same as credit cards. I gotta swipe 'em through first."

Annabeth handed him her green LotusCash Card.

He looked at it skeptically.

"Swipe it," Annabeth invited.

He did.

His meter machine started rattling. Lights flashed. Finally an infinity symbol came up next to the dollar sign.

The cigar fell out of the driver's mouth. He looked back at the group, eyes wide. "Where to in Los Angeles… uh, Your Highness?"

"The Santa Monica Pier." Annabeth sat up a little straighter. "Get us there fast, and you can keep the change."

Maybe she shouldn't have told him that.

The cab speedometer never dipped below ninety-five the whole way through the Mojave Desert.

…

On the road, Naruto and Percy told Grover and Annabeth about their latest dream, although Naruto decided not to mention about his conversation with the Nine-Tail Fox. It didn't seem right to say, 'Hey guess what? After months of silence from the Fox demon sealed in me, he decided to talk to me about me controlling his power.'

Fortunately, it turned out Naruto remembered more from the conversation than Percy (most likely because it took Naruto longer to be affected by the Lotus Casino), including about the nickname. Unfortunately, it lead to an argument over it

"Are you sure you heard the voice says Crooked One," Annabeth said, "Not: The Rich One? Or the Silent One?"

"I'm sure!" Naruto responded, "It was the Crooked One."

"But that throne you described it sounded like Hades throne," Grover said, "At least from what I heard."

"Yeah, but that's not the main focus of the dream, the pit was," Percy argued.

Annabeth's eyes widened. "Are you sure you heard the nickname correctly Naruto?"

"Yes! For the last time it was the Crooked One," Naruto responded.

"Why does it matter anyways?" Percy asked.

"It's… it doesn't matter. Hades has to be behind this,"

"Again with Hades," Naruto mumbled.

"It got to be, Naruto. He must have sent this thief and something went wrong—"

"Like what?" Percy asked.

"I—I don't know," she said. "But if he stole Zeus' symbol of power from Olympus, and the gods were hunting him, I mean, a lot of things could go wrong. So this thief hide the bolt, or he lost it somehow. Anyway, he failed to bring it to Hades. That's what the voice said in your dream, right? The guy failed. That would explained why the Furies were searching for it when they came after us on the bus. Maybe they thought we had retrieved the bolt."

"But if I'd already retrieve the bolt," Percy said, "why would I be traveling to the Underworld."

"To threaten Hades," Grover suggested. "Maybe to bribe or blackmail him into getting your mom back."

Naruto whistled. "You have evil thoughts for a goat."

"Why, thank you."

"But the thing in the pit said it was waiting for _two_ items," Percy argued. "If the bolt is one what's the other?"

Grover shook his head, clearly mystified.

"It doesn't matter. If it isn't Hades… no. It has to be Hades," Annabeth said.

Wasteland rolled by as the taxi passed a sign that said CALIFORNIA STATE LINE, 12 MILES.

"The answer is in the Underworld," Annabeth said. "You two saw spirits of the dead. There's only one place that could be. We're doing the right thing."

Naruto wanted to argue, but he has to admit. The answers does seem to be in the Underworld—or at least somewhere in there—but he had doubts it was with Hades. Sure the god was a creep, Naruto will admit that, but pointing fingers at Hades—too easy. But if it wasn't Hades, who was that voice?

…

At sunset, the taxi dropped Naruto, Percy, Annabeth, and Grover at the beach in Santa Monica. It looked exactly the way L.A. beaches do in the movies, only it smelled worse. There were carnival rides lining the Pier, palm trees lining the sidewalks, homeless guys sleeping in the sand dunes, and surfer dudes waiting for the perfect wave.

The four of them walked down to the edge of the surf.

"What now?" Annabeth asked.

At first Percy just stared at the Pacific, then he step into the surf.

"Percy?" Annabeth said. "What are you doing?"

Percy didn't reply as he kept walking further into the water.

"You know how polluted that water is? There're all kinds of toxic waste in there!" Annabeth continued but Percy was already under by time she said toxic.

"I doubt Poseidon will let Percy be harmed by toxic water," Naruto said.

Annabeth Grover and Naruto sat on the sand and waited for Percy. Naruto unsealed some snacks and drinks he took from the minibar back at the Lotus Casino. The only thing was that Naruto noticed that none of his clones packed anything to drink.

"Dang it! I told them to seal everything we're going to need," Naruto said.

"It's okay, Naruto," Annabeth said.

"I think I saw a Starsbucks nearby," Grover said.

"Well, I still have my LotusCash Card… maybe I can use it to get something to drink," Naruto said.

"I would have thought you threw that out by now," Annabeth said.

"I would have, but since I can't get into my trust fund and with what happened in the Taxi, I decided to keep it," Naruto said.

"Well, don't take too long," Annabeth said, "We don't know when Percy will get back."

"Tell me something I don't know," Naruto joked as he headed off.

Once he was off the beach Naruto did a quick transformation jutsu to change his hair from blond to red, his gray-blue eyes to brown, made his whisker markings disappeared and make his sharp features less sharp in order to disguise himself—since for all he know he and Percy were still fugitives—before headed towards the Starbucks, that he could see just a little ways off in the distance.

It only took him a few minutes to get there, but saw it was a little busy so he got in line and waited like the others.

He stood there for about five minutes before he noticed that the line was not making any attempt to move at all. He poked his head just out of the line to see what was happening and what was taking so long. When he saw why he frowned.

Standing at the front of the line was a woman in a grey work suit with a mobile pressed against her ear. She had sandy blonde hair that was tied into a bun and had brown eyes. The employee in front of her had a look of annoyance as he tried to talk to her, but she kept putting her hand up in front of him, stopping the employee from speaking. It was very rude and very disrespectful.

"Miss, could you please just—"

"Wait one more moment," she said causing everyone to groaned as she continued her conversation on the phone.

"Jane, just make an order so we can go already. Dad is waiting at the carnival for us, and I won't miss my time with him," an annoyed voice called out that got Naruto's attention.

He stuck his head out the other side of the line and saw a young girl who looks like about a year younger than Percy wearing faded blue jeans, purple purple top and beige jacket. She had a dark skin tone that Naruto guess was native American and her brown hair was cut choppy and braided down the side of her face and she obviously wasn't wearing makeup, but even Naruto had to admit she was pretty for her age. But what got his attention was that the girl's eyes seemed to change from green to blue to brown like a Kaleidoscope.

"Yes, yes, in a moment," the woman known as Jane said, which caused the girl to grumble at the older woman.

"Alright, that's enough," Naruto said to himself. It was bad enough Naruto had to wait in this line because of this woman, but she was disrespecting everyone around her.

Naruto step out of line and walked up to the woman. "Hey, Lady!"

The woman—along with everyone else—turned to Naruto just as he grabbed her phone. Before she could protest, Naruto hit the cancel call button and flipped it shut. He was tempted to say, 'Sorry, but Lady you're speaking too cannot talk right now' but since Chiron advised for him not to use cellphones, Naruto decided not too.

"What the heck do you think you're doing? Give me my phone back, little boy," she said angrily.

Naruto released a little killer intent, just enough to scare the woman enough to step back.

"Lady, I suggest you stop being rude and disrespectful and just make your order. There are a lot of people in here who I have no doubt just want to get their drinks and leave, and you're holding them up. You will get your phone back when you collect whatever you came here for."

Jane looked like she wanted to argue back but then she noticed that all the customers that were waiting were glaring at her while the young girl looked smug. No doubt she like seeing this woman being put in her place.

Jane reluctantly turned around and face the employee who had a smirk on his face as she gave him her order.

Naruto headed back to the of the line, which had grown, but he wasn't too upset since the customers gave him a pat on the back.

Once Naruto was in line he waited for the line to move.

"That was awesome," a voice said to his right. Naruto looked over to see the girl who was with Jane standing next to him with a big smile on her face.

"Thanks," Naruto said, "Too be honest I was tempted to say 'Sorry, but the person you're talking to cannot talk right now' and hang up."

The girl giggled. "Either way, you just made my day. I have waited for so long to see someone put her in her place.," she said. "My name is Piper."

"I'm Naruto," Naruto replied.

"Is your name Japanese? You don't look very much Japanese."

"That's because my parents were half Greek half Japanese, and I guess I took after my Greek Side." Naruto stretched the truth. "So I take it that lady is not your mom?"

"Heck no," Piper responded. "She's just my dad's assistant, but I get stuck with her enough times people always think she is. Truth is, I don't know my mom." Piper said the last bit a little bitterly. "She took off after I was born, and left my dad to raise me."

"Oh, I'm sorry to hear that," Naruto said while thinking, _Could she be one of us? I wish Grover was here. Maybe he could tell. Then again, even if she was she can't come with us._

Naruto decided to change topics, "I overheard you saying your dad was waiting for you at the carnival?"

Piper had a big smile. "Yeah, he's there right now and I would be too, if miss annoying over there would hurry up," she said looking at Jane scowling. "I don't see him a lot so time with him is pretty precious."

Naruto nodded. At that moment Jane walked up to them with her drink in her hand. She extended her hand out, wanting her phone back. Naruto obliged reluctantly.

"Come on, Piper," Jane said. "We don't want to keep your father waiting."

This made Piper go red in the face. "We wouldn't have to kept him waiting if you would have just hurried up."

Jane ignored the last comment as she headed off. Piper quickly turned to Naruto. "It was nice to meet you Naruto," she said before racing off after her father's assistant.

…

As soon as Jane left, the line picked up the pace quickly. Fortunately the LotusCash Card still worked even in the state of California and Naruto returned to the beach with a cup older with one capicino and three fruit smoothies.

By time he got back to the beach Percy was already out of the water and was snacking on the snacks Naruto unsealed before leaving to get drinks as they were waiting for him. Percy must have decided to take Are's backpack, because it was now slung onto his back, although Naruto didn't remember unsealing it.

 _Come to think about it, I don't think the clones even sealed up the backpack._ Naruto thought.

"What took you so long?" Annabeth asked with annoyance.

"Some lady would not get off her phone, and held up the line," Naruto said.

"I hate when that happens," Grover said as Percy nodded.

Annabeth rolled her eyes. "Boys."

Naruto handed the caffeinated drink to Grover and two of the fruit smoothies to Annabeth and Percy before drinking his own. Naruto decided not to tell them about his run in with Piper since he wasn't certain that if she was a demigod or not.

"So, Percy, what did your dad give you?" Naruto asked.

Percy dug into his pocket and took out four milky white pearls.

"My dad wasn't there, just a messenger. She said these will come in handy later on in the quest and that eventually everything returns to the sea. What does mean?"

"Bit cryptic, but at least he helped," Naruto said.

"There will be a price. Just you wait," Annabeth said.

"So where to next?" Grover asked.

Percy put the pearls back into his pocket and took out a return slip.

"I swiped this from Medusa's lair," he said handing it to his friends. "It says the D.O.A. recording studios. I thought she might have done business with Hades."

"You're right," Annabeth responded, "Hades had some of Medusa's victims delivered to the Underworld to be use as decorative for his wife's garden."

"No wonder Medusa's lair took form of a business," Naruto said, "Well, we better find this place."

No one argued.

…

They used to use the spare change Ares gave them to take the bus to West Hollywood. Percy showed the driver the Underworld address slip, but he'd never heard of DOA Recording Studios.

"You two reminded me of two kids I saw on TV." He eyed Percy and Naruto. "Are you two children actors or something?"

"Stunt doubles, actually," Naruto replied. "We use actually worked with a lot of famous kid actors."

"Oh! That explains it."

They thanked him and got off quickly at the next stop. They wandered for miles on foot, hoping to find DOA. Nobody seemed to know where it was, and Naruto's natural sense of direction don't work well with buildings.

Twice they had to hide into the alleys to avoid cop cars.

Percy once froze in front of an appliance store window because a television was playing an interview with Smelly Gabe. He was talking with Barbara Walters in the Jackson family apartment as if he was some kind of huge celebrity right in the middle of a poker game. To top that off there was a young blond lady sitting next to him, patting his hand.

A fake tear glistened on his cheek. He was saying, "Honest, Ms. Walters, if it wasn't for Sugar here, my grief counselor, I'd be wreck. My stepson and his delinquent friend took everything I cared about. My wife… my Camaro… I—I'm sorry. I have trouble talking about it."

"There you have it, America." Barbara Walters turned to the camera. "A man torn apart. An adolescent boy with serious issue, and a disturbed friend with nof family, and two mystery children yet to be identify. Let me show you again, the last known photo of these two young fugitives taken a week ago in Denver."

The screen cut to a grainy shot of Percy, Annabeth, Naruto, and Grover standing outside the Colorado diner, talking to Ares.

"Who is the man with them? Is Percy Jackson and Naruto Uzumaki really delinquent, a terrorist, or perhaps the brainwashed victim of a frightening new cult? When we come back, we chat with a leading child psychologist. Stay tune, America."

"When I see Gabe, I'm going to make him wish he never met me," Naruto growled.

"C'mon," Grover said as he hauled the two away.

It got dark, and hungry-looking characters started coming out on the streets to play. They kept walking past gangbangers, bums, and street hawkers, who looked at them like they were trying to figure if they were worth the trouble of mugging.

As they walked past an entrance of an alley, a voice from the darkness said, "Hey, you."

They froze as a gang of six kids circled around them. They were white kids with expensive clothes and mean faces that reminded Naruto and Percy of the rich delinquent boys in Yancy.

Naruto reached into his pouch for a smoke bomb, only to remember his gear didn't come with one. Instead Naruto took out a celestial bronze shurikan. He knew it won't work on mortals, but it might distract them.

Naruto threw it at the gang leader. The guy yelped as the shurikan pass right through him like he was an illusion.

"Now! Run," Naruto yelled at his friends.

They ran out of there, raced down the street and turned a corner.

"There!" Annabeth yelled.

Only one store on the block looked open, its windows glaring Neon. The sign above the door was hard for Percy Annabeth and Naruto to read, but Grover translate: "Crusty's Water Bed Palace."

It didn't sound like a friendly place, but with no other choice, they burst through the doors, ran behind a water bed, and ducked. A split second later, the gang kids ran past outside.

"I think we lost them," Grover panted.

A voice boomed behind them, "Lost who?"

They jumped.

Standing behind them was a guy who looked like a raptor in a leisure suit. He was at least seven feet tall, with absolutely no hair. He had gray, leathery skin, thick-lidded eyes, and a cold reptilian smile. He moved toward the group slowly.

His suit looked like something from the seventies. The shirt was silk paisley, unbuttoned halfway down a hairless chest. The lapels on his velvet jacket were as wide as landing stripes and he was wearing multiple silver chains around his neck.

"I'm Crusty," he said with a tartar-yellow smile.

Naruto coughed as he resisted the urge to snicker.

"Sorry to barge in," Percy told him. "We were just, um, browsing."

"You mean hiding from those no-good kids," he grumbled. "They hang around every night. I get a lot of people in here, thanks to them. Say, you want to look at a water bed?"

Before any of them could denied Crusty steered them deeper in the show room.

There was every kind of water bed you could imagine: different kind of wood, different patterns of sheets; queen-size, king-size, emperor-of-the-universe-size

"This is my most popular model." Crusty spread his hands over a bed covered with black satin sheets, with built-in Lava Lamps on the headboard. The mattress vibrated so it looked like oil-flavored Jell-O.

"Sweet!" Naruto admitted, "What is it called?"

"Million-hand massage," Crusty replied. "Go on, try it out. Shoot, take a nap. I don't care. No business today, anyway."

"Um," Percy said, "I don't think…"

"Million-hand massage!" Grover cried, and dove in. "You're right Naruto! This is sweet."

"Hmm," Crusty said, stroking his leathery chin. "Almost, almost."

"Almost what?" Percy asked.

He looked at Annabeth. "Do me a favor and try this one over here, honey. Might fit."

This time even Naruto was curious. "What do you mean 'might fit'?"

Crusty didn't reply as he led Annabeth over to the Safari Delux model with teakwood lions carved into the frame and a leopard-patterned comforter. When Annabeth didn't want to lie down, Crusty pushed her.

"Hey!"

Crusty snapped his fingers. _"Ergo!"_

Ropes lashed from the sides of the bed, lashing around Annabeth, holding her to the mattress.

Grover tried to get up, but his bed to lashed him down.

"N-not c-c-cool!" he tried to yell while his voice vibrated from the million-hand massage. "N-not c-cool a-at all!"

The giant looked at Annabeth and then turned toward Percy and Naruto. "Almost, darn it."

Percy stepped back and Naruto reached toward his pouch but Crusty's hand shot out and clamped around the back of Percy's neck and Naruto's arm. "Whoa, kids. Don't worry. We'll find both of you one in a second."

"Let our friends go." Percy said.

"Oh, sure I will. But I got to make them fit first."

"What do you mean?"

"All beds are exactly six feet, see? Your friends are too short. Got to make them fit."

Annabeth and Grover kept struggling."

"Can't stand imperfect measurements," Crusty muttered. _"Ergo!"_

A new set of ropes leaped out form top and bottom of the beds, wrapping around Grover and Annabeth's ankles, then around their armpits. The ropes started tightening, pulling my friends from both ends.

"Don't worry," Crusty said, "These are stretching jobs. Maybe three extra inches on their spines. They might even live. Now, why don't we find you two a bed you like, huh?"

"Percy! Naruto!" Grover yelled.

Naruto's mind was racing. This seem like a story he heard in Latin class—the one with Theseus and a monster called Procrustes, other known as the stretcher.

 _Well, this guy definitely Procrustes just with a nickname and suit. If he's a business man these days maybe I can use that to Percy's and mine advantage_ , Naruto thought inwardly smirking.

"You know what, sure? Let's take a look at those beds," Naruto said.

"Naruto, what are you doing?" Percy asked.

Naruto didn't answer but rather look at his friend with a reassuring smile which would make Percy worried if it wasn't for the fact that that Percy noticed a familiar glint in Naruto's eye.

Luckily Crusty—or rather Procrustes—didn't notice it, or didn't think much about it.

"I'm curious, what do you do for mortals over six feet?" Naruto asked.

"Oh, that happens all the time. It's a simple fix."

He let go of Percy's back and Naruto's arm and reached behind a nearby sales desk and brought out a double bladed brass axe. He said, "I just centered the subject as best I can and lop off whatever hangs over on either end."

"I see," Naruto said nodding his head.

"I'm so glad to come across an intelligent customer!"

 _More like cunning,_ Percy thought looking back at their two friends. Annabeth was turning pale. Grover made gurgling sounds.

"You know what, Crusty, I'll take on your offer to be stretched to six feet tall," Naruto said.

"Really?" Crusty asked.

"Yeah, but under one condition—it got to be in an orange water bed," Naruto said. "Orange is my favorite color, and if I'm going to risk my life to be stretched to six feet tall, I want it to be in a bed in my favorite color."

 _No way this guy is going to fall for that,_ Percy thought.

At first it seemed Percy thought right as Crusty studied Naruto suspiciously. Then he burst out laughing. "An orange color water bed, huh? I think I got one in the back room."

Crusty led Naruto into the back room as Naruto glanced at Percy sending a silent message: _You know what to do._

Percy nodded, still surprised that the stretcher fell for that.

Crusty led Naruto to the back room where sure enough there was a king size water bed with the frame painted orange with matching orange covers.' It even had bright orange lava lamps.

"Not many people like orange water beds these days, but you're in luck that we have the last one in stock," Procrustes said. "Try it out."

"Hmm… I don't know. It looks like it might cause waves if I jump on it. I get motion sickness really easy," Naruto lied.

"Oh don't worry about that, young man. All our beds have dynamic stabilizers to stop wave motion," Crusty said, "Even if I sit on it, it won't create a single wave."

"No way!"

"Absolutely."

"Show me!"

He sat down eagerly on the bed, patted the mattress. "No waves. See?"

Naruto snapped his fingers. _"Ergo."_

Ropes lashed around Crusty and flattened him against the mattress.

"Hey!" he yelled.

"Center him just right," Naruto recommended.

The ropes readjust themselves. Crusty's head stuck out the top and his feet stuck out the bottom.

"No!" he said. "Wait! This is just a demo."

Naruto took out _Uzushio no Ōarashi_ and clicked the button causing it to extend to it's full length. "A few simple adjustments…"

"You drive a hard bargain," Crusty said. "I'll give you thirty percent off on selected floor models!"

Naruto sharpened his Katana with his wind chakra and cut through Crusty's head.

Good news is, Crusty won't be making offers for a long time. Bad news: Naruto decided not to ask his grandfather to deliver the water bed to his apartment after it was covered in Monster dust.

Naruto butted the end of his sword with his hand causing the sword to shrink back down to sword form before returning to his friends.

Thankfully it seemed Percy had cut Annabeth and Grover free intime as they were pale, groaning and wincing in pain, but alive.

"Procrustes?" Annabeth asked.

"Dead," Naruto said. "But we still don't know where to find DOA Recording Studio."

"Yes we do!" Percy said as he showed a flier advertising for DOA's Recording Studio with a map underneath it. "According to this, it's only a block from here."

"Alright!" Naruto responded, "Let's go pay the Lord of the Dead a visit."

* * *

 **A/N:** If you haven't figured it out, the glint in Naruto's eyes are usually a sign that Naruto either up to no good or already pulled a prank over someone.

As for Piper, she doesn't know what Naruto really looks like, but she will when she finds out about the transformation jutsu


	19. Annabeth and Naruto Trains Cerberus

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next chapter there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

I don't own Percy Jackson series or Naruto series, or any of the characters of either series. Nor am I the writer of the Son of the Huntress series

I'm going to remind you guys this once: If you already decided who should Hinata's mom, you can vote on the poll. Here's the results from the Poll so far:

Aphrodite: 10  
Iris: 8  
Hebe: 12  
Demeter: 6  
Tyche: 4

* * *

 **Annabeth and Naruto Trains Cerberus**

Annabeth, Percy, Grover, and Naruto stood in the shadows of Valencia Boulevard, looking up at gold letters etched in black marble: DOA RECORDING STUDIOS.

Underneath, stenciled on the glass doors: NO SOLICITORS. NO LOITERING. NO LIVING.

It was almost midnight, but the lobby was brightly lit and full of the spirits of the dead, although due to the Mist, from where they were standing they looked like living people. Behind the security desk sat a tough-looking guard with sunglasses and an earpiece.

"You remember the plan?" Percy asked his friends.

"The plan," Grover gulped. "Yeah. I love the plan."

"What happens if the plan doesn't work?" Annabeth asked.

"Don't be negative," Percy said.

"Yeah, besides! If the plan fails, we can always think on our feet and wing it," Naruto said.

"No offense, Naruto, but that doesn't sound much better," Percy said.

"Says you, but that been my main fighting style for years," Naruto said.

"Well either way, we should head in," Annabeth said.

"Right! Let's whup some Underworld butt," Percy agreed.

They walked inside the DOA lobby.

Muzak played softly on hidden speakers. The carpet and walls were steel gray. Pencils cactuses grew in the corners like skeleton hands. The furniture was black leather, and every seat was taken by spirits.

Most of the spirits looked like living people at first, but at a closer look they look like ghost.

The security guard desk was a raised podium, so they had to look up at him.

The guy was tall and elegant, with chocolate-colored skin and bleached-blond hair shaved military style. We wore tortoiseshell shades and a silk Italian suit that matched his hair. A black rose was pinned to his lapel under a silver name tag.

Naruto didn't need to read the name tag to have a good guess who this guy was. _This is the Ferryman Charon? He looks nothing like how the stories described him._

However, Percy went by name tag and of course couldn't read it correctly as he asked: "Your name is Chiron?"

Naruto slapped his forehead and groaned. _I forgot Percy still has a hard time reading the difference between Chiron and Charon._

Charon leaned across the desk looking at Percy through his thick glasses and smiling with a sweet and cold smile that resembles a Python right before it eats its victims.

"What a precious young lad." He had a strange accent—British, maybe, but also as if he had learned English as a second language. "Tell me, mate, do I look like a centaur?"

"N-no."

"Sir," he added smoothly.

"Sir," Percy said.

He pinched the name tag and ran his fingers under the letters. "Can you read this, mate? It says C-H- _A_ -R-O-N. Say it with me: CARE-ON."

"Amazing! Now: _Mr._ Charon."

"Mr. Charon," Percy said.

Naruto bit his lip trying resist the urge to laugh.

"Well done." Charon sat back. "I _hate_ being confused with that old horse-man. And now, how may I help you little dead ones?"

Percy looked unsteady, as if forgetting what to say.

"We want to go to the Underworld," Annabeth said.

Charon's mouth twitched. "Well, that's refreshing."

"It is?" Naruto asked.

"Straightforward and honest. No screaming. No 'There must be a mistake, Mr. Charon.'" He looked at them. "How did you die, then?"

"We died in a ship wreck," Naruto replied. "A really bad one with the storms going on."

Charon nodded as if he heard it all before. "We been getting a lot of those. I don't suppose you have coins for passage. Normally, with adults, you see, I could charge your American Express, or add the ferry price to your last cable bill. But with children… alas, you never died prepared. Suppose you'll have to take a seat for a few centuries.

"Oh, but we have coins." Percy set four golden drachmas he gathered from Procrustes' office desk on the counter.

"Well, now…" Charon moistened his lips. "Real drachmas. Real golden drachmas. I haven't see these in…"

His fingers hovered greedily over the coins.

 _Come on, take it,_ Naruto thought.

Then Charon looked at Percy with a cold stare behind his glasses. "Here now," he said. "You couldn't read my name correctly. Are you dyslexic, lad?"

"No," Percy said. "I'm dead."

Charon leaned forward and took a sniff. "You're not dead. I should've known. You're a godling."

"We have to get to the Underworld," Percy insisted.

Charon made a growling sound deep in his throat.

Immediately, all the spirits in the waiting room got up and started pacing, agitated, running hands through their hair, checking their wristwatches, or lighting cigarettes."

 _Spirits can still smoke even after death—who knew,_ Naruto responded while thinking, _I know a few ninjas that might be glad to hear that._

…Elemental Nations…

A leaf shinobi with dark hair and beard name: Asuma Sarutobi was on a mission with Team Ten and was taking watch while lighting a cigarette when he sneezed.

 _Who could be talking about me at this time?_ Asuma thought.

…Other world…

"Leave while you can," Charon told the group. "I'll just take these and forget I saw you."

He started to go for the coins, but Percy snatched them before he could.

"No service, no tip," Percy said while trying to be braver than he actually was.

Charon growled again—a deep, blood-chilling sound. The spirits of the dead started pounding on the elevator doors.

"Now hold on a second, I'm sure we can negotiate a compromise," Naruto said taking out his pouch full of drachmas. "After all, if the stories about you are correct you're a negotiable being." Naruto took out drachmas from his pouch so Charon could see them before he dropped them back in the pouch.

Charon's growl changed into more of a Lion's purr. "Do you think I can be bought, godling? Eh… just out of curiosity, how much have you got there."

"Twenty drachmas, plus a few dozen more that we picked up on the way here," Naruto said. "And they all can be yours if you let us on your ferry, and I can even ask Hades for a pay raise so you can get a brand new Italian suit to go with it."

Charon studied Naruto for a bit. "I take it you're one of Hermes' kids?"

"Grandson, actually," Naruto replied.

Charon nodded. "It makes sense now. Hermes is well known for making _admirable_ negotiations, and his kids tend to be the same. Although you're the first grandson of Hermes I seen in a long time."

"Do we have a deal or not?" Naruto asked.

"Very well," Charon said. "We're almost full anyways, but I'm sure we can fit four more."

Percy and Naruto both dropped their pouch of drachmas as well as the four coins Percy retook earlier.

Percy thought about what the sea spirit saying about heroes who enter and leave the Underworld having strengths that helped them do so.

 _At first I would of thought Naruto's greatest strength is his ninja skills, but now I see that's not the only case,_ Percy thought, _Good thing Naruto is on our side._

Charon stood, scoop up the money, and said, "Come along."

They pushed through the crowd of waiting spirits, who started grabbing their clothes like the wind, their voices whispering to let them come with. But Charon shoved them out of the way, grumbling, "Freeloaders."

He escorted them into the elevator, which was already crowded with souls of the dead, each one holding a green boarding pass. Charon grabbed two spirits who were trying to get on with us and pushed them back into the lobby.

"Right. Now, no one gets any ideas while I'm gone," he announced to the waiting room. "And if anyone moves the dial off my easy-listening station again, I'll make sure you're here for another thousand years. Understand?"

He shut the doors. He put a key card into a slot in the elevator panel and they started to descend.

"What happens to the spirits waiting in the lobby?" Annabeth asked.

"Nothing," Charon said.

"For how long?"

"Forever, or until I'm feeling generous."

"Oh," she said. "That's… fair."

Charon raised an eyebrow. "Whoever said death was fair, young miss? Wait until it's your turn. You'll die soon enough, where you're going."

"We'll get out alive," Percy said.

"Ha."

"Hey, Mr. Charon, since you have transported many souls in the past, I been wanting to know if you ever transported souls from the elemental nations?" Naruto asked.

"Thinking about your chances already, godling?" Charon asked.

"No," Naruto replied. "I just wonder if there's any chance there will be spirits I would know from there."

"Well, sadly to say, young lad, that I have not. I know there were many demigod children there who died so heroically that even my master would have rewarded them Esylum. However, if they died in the elemental nations—which most likely they have, then their afterlife fate would be in the hands of lord of that world."

"Wait, you mean Hades isn't the only lord of the dead?" Annabeth asked.

Charon chuckled. "You have a lot to learn young miss if you're not aware of the answer to your question."

"What?"

"But yes, there is a lord of the dead in the Elemental Nations. It was part of the deal the Olympians had in order to keep visiting there. Any children they have in that realm born there, their life would fall in the Shinigami's hands."

 _So then, since I was born in the elemental nations, when I died, in the end I won't be coming down here,_ Naruto thought. _Not exactly a pleasant thought._

The floor started swaying. Naruto noticed that they were no longer in an elevator, but rather a wooden barge that was moving forward. The air turned misty as the spirits around them started changing shapes. Their modern clothes flickered and changed into gray hooded robes.

Charon himself changed as his creamy Italian suit had been replaced by a long black robe. His tortoise glasses were gone. His face turned transparent like a spirit, except his skull was still visible as day. Where his eyes should've been were empty sockets—like Ares' eyes, except Charon's were totally dark, full of night and death and despair.

 _Now this is the Charon that matches the stories,_ Naruto thought. _Good thing I'm scared of Spiders and not ghost, otherwise I probably won't last down here._

Charon was poling the barge forward on a dark oily river, swirling with bones, dead fish, and other, things—plastic dolls, crushed carnations, soggy diplomas with gilt edges.

Grover said, "I'm getting seasick."

"This is the River of Styx? The River that gave Achilles invulnerability?" Naruto asked.

"The very same," Charon said. "However that power isn't as easily obtained as the stories you may have read made it sound like, so I wouldn't recommend you go diving into it. Not unless you already planned to die early."

"I don't plan too," Naruto said thinking, _As tempting as it is to have invulnerability, it's not worth the risk to release the Nine-Tail Fox onto this world. Especially since whoever that mystery voice wants it._

"Why is the Styx polluted?" Annabeth asked.

"For thousands of years, you humans have been throwing in everything as you come across—hopes, dreams, wishes that never came true. Irresponsible waste management, if you ask me."

Mist curled off the filthy water. Above them, almost lost in the gloom, was a ceiling of stalactites. The far shore glimmered with greenish light of poison.

Naruto noticed that Percy was in a verge of panic until Annabeth grabbed his hand in reassurance.

 _Oh yeah, those two like each other,_ Naruto thought.

The shoreline of the Underworld came into their view. Craggy rocks and volcanic sand stretched inland about a hundred yards to the base of a high stone wall, which marched off in either direction as far as they could see. A sound came from somewhere nearby in the green gloom, echoing off the stones—the howl of a large animal.

"Old Three-Face is hungry," Charon said. His smile turned skeletal in the greenish light. "Bad luck for you, godlings."

Percy Grover and Annabeth were a bit nervous despite them having a plan, but Naruto was a little excited.

 _I finally get to meet the great three-headed dog Cerberus,_ Naruto thought.

The bottom of their boat slid onto the black sand. The dead began to disembark. A woman holding a little girl's hand. An old man and an old woman hobbling along arm in arm. A boy no older than Percy, shuffling silently along in his gray robe.

Charon said, "I'd wish you luck, mates, but there isn't any down here. Mind you, don't forget to mention my pay raise."

He counted their golden coins into his pouch, then took up his pole. He warbled something that sounded like a Barry Manilow song as he ferried the empty barge back across the river.

"Come on," Annabeth said.

They followed the spirits up a well worn path.

…

The entrance of the underworld wasn't what Naruto expected. According to Percy, it look like a cross between airport security and the Jersey Turnpike.

There were three separate entrances under one huge black archway that said YOU ARE NOW ENTERING EREBUS. Each entrance had a pass-through metal detector with security cameras mounted on top. Beyond that was tollbooths manned by black-robed ghouls that resembles Charon.

The howling of Cerberus was really loud from where they were, but they couldn't see the beast.

The dead queued up in three lines, two marked ATTENDANT ON DUTY, and one marked EZ DEATH. The EZ DEATH line was moving right along. The other two were crawling.

"What do you figure?" Percy asked Annabeth.

"The fast ling must go straight to the Asphodel Fields," she said. "No contest. They don't want to risk judgment from the court, because it might go against them."

"I would face judgment," Naruto said.

"Wait! There's a court for the dead people?" Percy asked.

"Yeah. Three judges. They switch around who sits on the bench. King Minos, Thomas Jefferson, Shakespeare—people like that. Sometimes they look at a life and decided that person needs a special reward—the Field of Elysium. Sometimes they decide on punishment. But most people, well, they just lived. Nothing special, good or bad. So they go to the Asphodel Fields.'

"And do what?"

Grover said, "Imagine standing in a wheat field in Kansas. Forever."

"Harsh," Naruto said before noticing something, "Hey, isn't that the preacher from the news?"

They looked to see a couple of black-robbed ghouls had pulled aside one spirit and were frisking him at the security desk. Percy and Grover recognized him as well. They'd seen him a couple of times at the Yancy Academy dorm. He supposed to be a televangelist from upstate New York who'd raised millions of dollars for orphanages. But then he was caught spending the money on stuff for his mansion to show off his greed—as Naruto once put it. The last they heard, he died in a police chase when his "Lamborghini for the Lord" went off a cliff.

Percy said. "What're they doing to him?"

"Special punishment from Hades," Grover guessed. "The really bad people get his personal attention as soon as they arrive. The Fur—the Kindly Ones will set up an eternal torture for him.

"But if he's a preacher," Percy said, "and he believes in a different hell…"

Grover shrugs. "Who says he's seeing this place the way we're seeing it? Humans see what they want to see."

"That or the Field of Punishment is as just what they call hell," Naruto said.

"Naruto, this better have nothing to do with what you said back in the truck about their being other gods other than the Greek Gods," Annabeth said.

Naruto stayed quiet but they had a feeling it was, although it was hard to argue after what Charon told Naruto, but Percy and Grover guess that Annabeth will admit that it meant there are other kind of gods in their world.

"Come on guys," Percy said.

…

When they got closer to the gates, the howling got so loud that it now shook the ground, but they still couldn't find Cerberus.

Then, about fifty feet in front of them, the green mist shimmered. Standing just where the path split into three lanes was an enormous shadowy monster.

It was half transparent like the dead, which explains why they didn't see it before now. No one would have saw it while it was standing absolutely still, except for its six eyes and three sets of teeth. What worse, it was staring right at them now.

Percy's jaw hung open. All he could say was, "He's a Rottweiler."

Sure enough, Cerberus looked exactly a woolly mammoth size Rottweiler with three heads.

 _Oh yeah, he definitely would make a sweet summoning_ , Naruto responded.

The dead walked right up to him—no fear at all. The ATTENDANT ON DUTY line parted on either side of him. The EZ DEATH spirits walked right between his front paws and under his belly, which they could do without even couching.

"I'm starting to see him better," Percy muttered. "Why is that?"

"Maybe we been down here long enough that he starting to look more visible," Naruto said.

Annabeth moistened her lips. "or because we're getting closer to being dead."

"I like Naruto's explanation better," Grover said.

The dog's middle head craned toward us. It sniffed the air and growled.

"I think it can smell the living," Percy said.

"But that's okay," Grover said, trembling. "Because we have a plan."

"Right," Annabeth said in a small voice. "A plan."

"Let's just get this over with," Naruto responded.

They moved toward the monster.

The middle head snarled at them, then barked so loud their eyeballs rattled.

"Can you understand it?" Naruto asked Grover.

"Oh yeah," he said. "I can understand it."

"What's it saying?" Percy asked.

"I don't think humans have a four letter word translates, exactly."

Percy took out the bedpost he'd brought, held it up, and tried to smile as if he wasn't about to die.

"Hey, Big Fella," he called up. "I bet they don't play with you much."

"GROWWWLLLL!"

"Good boy," Percy said weakly.

He waved the stick. Cerberus' middle head followed the movement. The other two heads trained their eyes on him, completely ignoring the spirits.

"Fetch!" he threw the stick into the gloom. There was a _ker-sploosh_ from the River of Styx.

Cerberus glared at Percy, unimpressed. His eyes were baleful and cold.

"So much for your plan," Naruto muttered.

Cerberus was now making a new kind of growl, deeper down in his three throats.

"Um," Grover said. "Percy?"

"Yeah?"

"I just thought you'd want to know."

"Yeah?"

"Cerberus? He's saying we've got ten seconds to pray to the god of our choice. After that… well… he's hungry."

"Wait!" Annabeth said as she started riffling through her pack.

"Five seconds," Grover said. "Do we run now?"

Annabeth produced a red rubber ball the size of a grapefruit. It was labeled WATERLAND, DENVER, CO. She raised the ball and marched straight up to Cerberus.

She shouted, "See the ball? You want the ball, Cerberus? Sit!"

Cerberus looked as stunned as the rest of them.

All three heads cocked sideways. Six nostrils dilated.

"Sit!" Annabeth called again.

Cerberus licked his three sets of lips, shifted on his hunches, and sat, immediately crushing a dozen spirits who'd been passing underneath him in the EZ DEATH line. The spirits made muffled hisses as they dissipated, like the air let out of tires.

Annabeth said, "Good boy!"

She threw Cerberus the ball.

He caught it in his middle mouth. It was barely big enough for him to chew, and the other heads started snapping at the middle, trying to get the new toy.

At this point Naruto caught on what Annabeth was doing.

"Annabeth, get Cerberus to drop the ball and hand it too me," Naruto responded.

Annabeth nodded. "Drop it!"

Cerberus' heads stopped fighting and looked at her. The ball was wedged between two of his teeth like a tiny piece of gum. He made a loud, scary whimper dropped the ball, which was now slimy and bitten nearly in half, at Annabeth's feet.

"Good boy." She picked up the ball.

Naruto quickly made the handsign and created a single clone. Annabeth caught onto what Naruto was up to and handed the ball to the clone.

The clone walked up to the dogs. "Okay, boy, you want to play with me now! You want the ball!"

"Let's go!" Annabeth said. "EZ DEATH line is faster."

"Stay, hey stay!" the clone said waving the ball, "If you want to the ball, stay!"

Cerberus whimpered as he stayed as the four demigods passed through under Cerberus.

"Good boy!" the clone yelled after they were gone and threw the ball. This time the left mouth snatched it, only to be attacked by the middle head, while the right head moaned in protest.

They bolted through the EZ DEATH line just as Naruto received his clone memory, He manage to savage what was left of the dog and threw it to the right head so all three heads had a turn before disappearing in a puff of smoke.

"If this goes well, we should really talk to Hades about playing with Cerberus more," Naruto said.

Annabeth nodded in agreement.

They pushed through the metal detector, which immediately screame d and set off flashing red lights. "Unauthorized possessions! Magic detected!"

Cerberus started to bark.

They burst through the EZ DEATH gate, which started even more alarms blaring, and they raced into the Underworld.

Once they had taken cover in a rotten trunk of an immense black tree, they were able to catch their breath.

"Well, guys, did we learn anything?" Naruto asked.

"That three-headed dogs prefer red rubber balls over sticks?" Percy replied.

"That Percy's plan really, really bite!" Grover said.

"I think he's referring to the fact that sometimes thinking on your feet has its advantages," Annabeth said.

"That—and the fact that even monstrous dogs need attention once in a while," Naruto replied.

"Yeah—how did you two know that rubber ball would work?" Percy asked Annabeth and Naruto.

"Obedience school," Annabeth said. "When I was little at my dad's house, we had a Doberman."

"As for me," Naruto said, "I had a friend in the leaf who is from a clan that trains and fight alongside with ninja hounds. Anyways, we better get going."

No one argued against it.


	20. Meeting with Hades Didn't End Well

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next chapter there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

I don't own Percy Jackson series or Naruto series, or any of the characters of either series. Nor am I the writer of the Son of the Huntress series

I'm going to remind you guys this once: If you already decided who should Hinata's mom, you can vote on the poll. Here's the results from the Poll so far:

Aphrodite: 14  
Iris: 9  
Hebe: 17  
Demeter: 6  
Tyche: 4

* * *

 **Meeting with Hades Didn't End Well**

One way to describe the Field of Aphodel is a giant field with whispering, no lights with black grass trampled grass; a warm, moist wind blowing like the breath of swamp; and black poplar trees growing in clumps here and there. Most importantly the only occupants are spirits whose numbers are more than the population of the living on earth.

 _Oh yeah! Definitely a good thing I'm not scared of ghost,_ Naruto thought.

The cavern ceiling was so high above looked like it could have been a bank of storm clouds. Only it was stalactites, which glowed faint gray and looked pointed. There were some that dotted the field so it didn't take much to figure out that the stalactites have fallen before, and, although not much of a problem for the ghost, made Percy Annabeth Grover and Naruto cautious.

The group tried to blend into the crowd, keeping an eye out for security ghouls.

Despite what Charon said, Naruto couldn't help but looked around, hoping to find someone he might know from his world, but he had no luck. The spirit's faces shimmered with the look of slightly angry and confused. Some tried to come up and speak to the group, but their voices just chatter, like bat twittering. Then they realize none of them could understand, they frowned and move away.

"Hey Naruto! Come on!" Percy yelled.

"Coming!" Naruto said.

They crept along, following the line of new arrivals that snaked from the main gates toward a black tented pavilion with a banner that read:

JUDGMENTS FOR ELYSIUM AND ETERNAL DAMNATION  
Welcome, Newly Deceased!

Out the back tent came two much smaller lines. To the left, spirits flanked by security ghouls were marched down a rocky path toward the Fields of Punishment, which glowed and smoked in the distance, a vast, cracked wasteland with rivers of lava and minefields and miles of barbed wires separating the different torture areas.

Even from where they were standing, they could see people being chased by hellhounds, burned at the stakes, forced to run naked through cactus patches or listen to opera music. In the distance there was an ant-size figure of Sisyphus struggling to move his boulder to the top, and Naruto even saw a man in a middle of the lake with a fruit-bearing tree right above him. Immediately Naruto figured it was Tantalus the child eater considering whenever he tried to reach for the fruit, the branched moved away from him, and when he tried to drink, the water moved away from him.

The line going to the right side of the judgment pavilion was heading to the Field of Elysium, which was a small valley surrounded by walls—a gated community, which seemed like a spirit paradise compared to the rest of the Underworld. There were different type of towns and villages from across time: from Roman Villas, to medieval castles, to Victoria mansions. Silver and gold flower bloomed on the lawns. The grass rippled in rainbow colors. They could hear laughter and smell barbecue cooking.

In the middle of the Field of Elysium was a glittering blue lake, with three small islands: the Isles of the Blest, for those who had chosen to be reborn three times, and three times achieved Elysium. Altogether, Field of Elysium was a place for heroes and the smallest of the three fields.

 _Surely there are more people than that who achieve Elysium than that,_ Naruto thought, _maybe it's so small because spirits who go there can try for Reincarnation._

They left the judgment pavilion and moved deeper into the Asphodel Field. It got darker. The colors faded from their clothes. The crowd of chattering spirits began to thin. Although one ghost pass by Naruto, as if minding her business like a regular person instead of a ghost. She looked like she might have been an African American girl at one time, with chocolate brown skin, curly dark hair under the hood of her cloak. The odd part was that she didn't look confused or angry, but rather sad.

 _I guess not all spirits of the Field of Asphodel have that angry and confuse looks,_ Naruto thought.

After a few miles, they began to hear a familiar screech in the distance. Looming on the horizon was a palace of glittering black obsidian. Above the parapets swirled three dark batlike creatures: the Furies, waiting for them.

"I suppose it's too late to turn back," Grover said wistfully.

"We'll be okay," Percy said.

"Maybe we should search some of the other places first," Grover suggested. "Like, Elysium for instance…"

"Come on, Grover, relax," Naruto said. "Just think, when we get out of here and complete this quest, the Council of Cloven Elders will have no other choice but give you your searcher's license."

"Yeah, sure—" Grover said.

Suddenly he yelped. His sneakers sprouted wings and his legs shot forward, pulling him away from them. He landed flat on his back in the grass.

"Grover," Annabeth chided. "Stop messing around."

"But I didn't—"

He yelped again. His shoes were flapping like crazy now. They levitated off the ground and started dragging him away from us.

 _"Maia!"_ he yelled, but the magic word seemed to have no effect. _"Maia_ , already! Nine-one-one! Help!"

Naruto and Percy made a grab for Grover's hand, but only Naruto was able to catch him with his amazing ninja reflexes as Grover picked up speed, causing Grover to skid downhill like a bobsled while Naruto skidding with him face first.

Percy and Annabeth ran after them.

"Grover, help me up!" Naruto said.

Grover nodded and pulled him up so Naruto could get to his feet.

 _If I can get to my feet, I can apply chakra to them and maybe slow us down,"_ Naruto thought.

They zipped between the legs of spirits who chattered at the two of them with annoyance.

Then the shoes veered sharply to the right, causing Naruto to land on his face again while managing to hold on although it did cause Naruto to yelp: "OW!"

They reached a steep slope where Grover picked up speed. Annabeth and Percy were now sprinting just to catch up. The cavern walls narrowed to either side as they entered a tunnel. Luckily, Naruto had already started pulling himself up so he didn't get a mouth full of rocks.

Naruto manage to use Grover's pants and shirt without tugging on his fur to get to his feet. That's when he saw what was ahead of them and almost froze.

The tunnel widened into a huge dark cavern, and in the middle was a chasm the size of a city block. Naruto recognized it from his dreams.

 _I know what's in you, and they know too…_ Naruto remember the voice once told him, _…You may think you're safe, but eventually the dangers of the Elemental Nations you were brought here to avoid will catch up…_

 _Not good,_ Naruto thought. _We got to stop now._

Naruto while somehow holding on, Naruto manage to make a single hand handsign in order to applied chakra to his feet to stick to ground but they were still skidding across the ground.

 _I can do this,_ Naruto thought to himself despite feeling anxious about the memory of his dream. _Don't forget what Sakura said back in the forest about chakra._

…Flashback…

Back when Naruto was learning the tree walking exercise. Naruto was struggling just to make two steps on the tree so he decided to ask Sakura for advice. At first she was reluctant, but she gave in.

"Alright Naruto, listen carefully. Chakra uses spiritual energy so you can't get too excited. To gather chakra to your feet, you have to relax and focus on the tree," Sakura advised.

…End of Flashback…

 _I've improved my chakra control since then, but it means nothing if I let what's down there get to me,_ Naruto thought, _just calm down and focus._

Naruto closed his eyes and focus his chakra to feet as best as he could while picturing the rocky surface as all the trees he used for his tree climbing exercise.

Sure enough his feet started glowing with blue chakra and Naruto and Grover skidded to a stop just several feet from slope.

The winged shoed kept tugging, trying to break Grover free, but Naruto kept his held.

Finally, Grover's hooves slipped out of his fake feet and both fell onto the rocky surface. Both sneakers flew off into the darkness.

"Ow!" both groaned as Percy and Annabeth manage to catch up and stop to catch their breaths.

Both Naruto and Grover were slightly scraped and bruised, and Grover's eyes had gone slit-pupiled like a goat, which happens whenever Grover was terrified, but both were okay.

"Thanks Naruto," Grover said.

"Don't worry about it," Naruto said.

"I thought you two were goners," Annabeth said.

"So did I for a moment you know," Naruto admitted as he rubbed the back of his head, "but then I reminded myself of the advice I once got about chakra control: how I have to keep calm and to focus on my purpose."

"Well, that's a good thing," Annabeth said.

"Wait," Percy said. "Listen."

They did and sure enough there was a deep whisper in the darkness.

Annabeth, "Maybe we should—"

"Shh." Percy stood.

The sound was getting louder, a muttering, evil voice from far, far below them. Coming from the pit.

Grover and Naruto sat up as Grover said, "Wh—what's that noise?"

"Tartarus," Annabeth said. "The entrance to Tartarus."

Percy uncapped Anaklusmos and Naruto took out _Uzushio no Ōarashi_ and clicked the button causing both swords to grow out in full form.

Although Anaklusmos was the only sword that glowed, the evil voice seem to have sense both swords and faltered for a moment before resuming its chant in a language older than Greek.

"Magic," Percy said.

"We have to get out of here," Annabeth said.

Together Percy and Annabeth dragged Grover to his hooves as Naruto got back up and they started to run back up the tunnel.

Suddenly, a cold blast of wind pulled at their backs. For a moment Percy almost lost his footing, but Naruto, who was sticking to the ground with chakra kept Percy up.

"Go!" Naruto said.

Percy nodded as they struggled forward until they reached the top of the tunnel and onto the Field of Asphodel. The wind died once they were out, but a wail of outrage echoed from deep in the tunnel.

"What _was_ that?" Grover panted. "One of Hades' pets?"

"No..." Naruto said as he butted his handle in his other hand, causing his katana to shrink back down into pen form. "Hades' pets and servants would be in the Underworld, not in Tartarus, right? It got to be something else."

Percy capped his sword and put the pen back in his pocket. "Let's keep going." He looked at Grover. "Can you walk?"

Grover swallowed. "Yeah, sure. I never liked those shoes, anyway."

"Speaking of which why did they do that?" Naruto asked.

"It could be the fact that we're down here," Percy said.

"It can't be that simple," Annabeth said. "Don't forget, Luke got those from Hermes himself, and Hermes is one of the few Olympians that is allowed to enter and leave the Underworld when needed."

"Then what—" Naruto said.

"I don't know. But for now we should go get to Hades Palace," Annabeth said.

No one argued as they headed off.

…

The furies circled the parapets in the high gloom. The outer walls of the fortress glittered black, and the two-story-tall bronze gates stood wide open.

Engraved on the gates were scenes of death: some from modern times—an atomic bomb exploding over a city, a trench filled with gas mask-wearing soldiers, a line of African famine victims waiting with empty bowls—and yet each one of them looked as if it been etched into the bronze thousands of years ago.

"I wonder if they're prophecies of death," Naruto said.

"Maybe," Percy said.

They headed into the courtyard and into a garden of multicolored mushrooms, poisonous shrubs, and weird luminous plants that grew without sunlight. Precious jewels made up for the lack of flowers, piles of big rubies, clumps of raw diamonds. Standing around the garden were frozen party guest of Medusa's garden statues—petrified children, satyrs, and centaurs—and smiling grotesquely.

In the center of the garden was an orchard of pomegranate trees, their orange blooms neon bright in the dark.

"The garden of Persephone," Annabeth said. "Keep walking."

"Don't need to tell me twice," Naruto said.

"Can't I have one Pomegranate?" Grover asked.

"Come on," Percy said as he and Naruto dragged Grover away.

They walked up the steps of the palace, between black columns, through a black marble portico, and into the house of Hades. The entry hall had a polished bronze floor, which seemed to boil in the reflected torchlight. There was no ceiling, just the cavern roof, far above.

Every side doorway was guarded by a skeleton in military gear. Some wore Greek armor, some British redcoat uniforms, some camouflage with tattered American flags on the shoulders. They carried spears or muskets or M-16s. None of them bothered the three demigods and the satyr, but their hollow eye sockets followed them as they walked down the hall, toward the big set of doors at the opposite end.

Two U.S. Marines skeletons guarded the doors. They grinned down at us, rocket-propelled grenade launchers held across their chest."

"You know," Grover mumbled, "I bet Hades doesn't have trouble with door-to-door salesmen."

"Or salesmen spirits," Naruto joked turning to see Percy struggling with his backpack. "Is something wrong Percy?"

"I'm fine," Percy said. "Let's just get this over with."

A hot wind blew down the corridor, and the doors swung open. The guards stepped aside.

"I guess that means _entrez-vous_ ," Annabeth said.

Percy and Naruto recognized the room from their dream. Only this time the throne of Hades was occupied.

He was the third god Percy met and the fifth god Naruto met (now including Hebe), but Hades must have been in full size form and decided to dress as a god.

Hades was at least ten feet tall, and dressed in black silk robes and a crown of braided gold. His skin was albino white, his hair was shoulder-length and jet black. He wasn't bulked up like Ares, but he radiated power. He lounged on his throne of fused human bones, looking lithe, graceful, and dangerous as a panther.

Naruto could sense Hades aura almost immediately as they entered the room. It was effective, just as Ares' was, and Hades resembled some old photos he seen: Adolf Hitler, and Napoleon. Hades had the same intense eyes that were mesmerizing, evil with charisma. And yet, at the same time, Naruto thought he'd seen someone else with eyes like that personally just disregarded it.

"You are brave to come here, Son of Poseidon," he said in an oily voice. "After what you have done to me, very brave indeed. Or perhaps you are simply very foolish."

"At this point its brave, but he can be foolish," Naruto joked.

Hades turned to Naruto causing the blonde male to shrink down, realizing that making a joke right now might not be a good thing.

"You're the legacy child of Athena and Hermes from the elemental nations who also bares the fate of the Jinchuriki, huh?"

"Uh—yes sir—I mean lord," Naruto said. "My name is Naruto Uzumaki."

"Uzumaki, huh? I heard things about that clan," Hades said.

"Clan?" Naruto responded.

"The Shinigami of your world and I are in good terms with each other, and he has told me all about the clan that summons him for their sealing jutsus," Hades said. "To find that one of such an interesting clan is a legacy of my niece and nephew is rather, _interesting_ to say the least."

"Wait—there was an Uzumaki clan?" Naruto asked.

"Hmph, I guess you would be too young to know about it. Not to mention if all the stories about your parents are true, I guess it's not shocking you don't know much about your mortal heritage at all," Hades said.

Naruto blinked in confusion. At first he thought he saw a bit of sympathy in Hades' eyes when the lord of the dead said that. As if Hades have an idea what Naruto is going through, or at least knew someone who does.

Percy cleared his throat. "Lord and Uncle, I come with two requests."

Hades raised an eyebrow. He sat forward in his throne, causing shadowy faces to appear in the folds of his black robe, faces of torment, as if the garment were stitched of trapped souls from the Fields of Punishment, trying to get out.

"Only two requests?" Hades said. "Arrogant child. As if you have not already taken enough. Speak, then. It amuses me not to strike you dead yet."

Percy swallowed back his fear.

Meanwhile Naruto noticed the smaller throne next to Hades'. It was shaped like a black flower, gilded with gold. His guess was that it belonged to Persephone, and because it was Summer, the queen of the Underworld was spending this time of year with her mother Demeter.

 _I wonder if Persephone looks different during the seasons she's down here than she does with her mother?_ Naruto thought.

Annabeth cleared her throat and prodded Naruto and Percy on the back. Apparently Percy was looking at Persephone's throne too, but Naruto doubt for the same reason. He knew full and well Persephone was one of the few people who can calm Hades down.

"Lord Hades," Percy said. "Look, sir, there can't be a war among the gods. It would be… bad."

"Really bad," Grover added helpfully.

"Return Zeus' master bolt to me," Percy said. "Please, sir. Let me carry it to Olympus."

Hades' eyes grew dangerously bright. "You dare keep up this pretense, after what you have done?"

"What are you talking about?" Naruto asked. "What do you think Percy have done?"

The throne room shook with so much tremor that Naruto bet that L.A. could feel it. Debris fell from the cavern ceiling. Doors burst open all along the walls, and skeletal warriors marched in, hundreds of them from across history. They lined the perimeter of the room, blocking the exits.

Hades bellowed, "Do you think I _want_ war, godling?"

"You are the Lord of the Dead," Percy said carefully. "A war would expand your kingdom, right?"

"A typical thing for my brothers to say! Do you think I need more subjects? Did you not see the sprawl of the Asphodel Fields?"

"Well…"

"Have you any idea how much my kingdom has swollen in this past century alone, how many subdivisions I had to open?"

Percy looked like he wanted to say something, but Hades was on a roll now.

"More security ghouls," he moaned. Traffic problems at the judgment pavilion. Double overtime for the staff. I used to be a rich god, Percy Jackson. I control all the precious metals of the earth. But my expenses!"

At that point, Percy decided to bring up: "Charon wants a pay raise."

"Don't get me started on Charon!" Hades yelled. "He's been impossible ever since he discovered Italian suits. Problems everywhere, and I've got to handle all of them personally. The commute time alone from then palace to the gates is enough to drive me insane! And the dead just keep arriving. _No,_ godling. I need no help getting subjects! _I_ did not ask for this war."

 _I had a feeling that might be the case,_ Naruto thought.

"But you took Zeus' master bolt," Percy argued.

"Lies!" More rumbling. Hades rose from his throne, towering to the height of a football goalpost. "Your father may fool Zeus, boy, but I am not so stupid. I see his plan."

"His plan?"

" _You_ were the thief on the winter solstice," he said. "Your father thought to keep you his little secret. He directed you into the throne room on Olympus. You took the master bolt _and_ my helm. Had I not sent my Fury to discover you at Yancy Academy, Poseidon might have succeeded in hiding his scheme to start a war. But now you have been forced into the open. You will be exposed as Poseidon's thief, and I will have my helm back!"

"But…" Annabeth spoke. "Lord Hades, your helm of darkness is missing, too?"

"Don't play innocent with me, girl. You and the Uzumaki boy and the satyr have been helping this hero—coming here to threaten me in Poseidon's name, no doubt—to bring me an ultimatum. Does Poseidon think I can be blackmailed or threatened into supporting him?"

"Now hold on a second!" Naruto argued. "I been with Percy the whole winter break, and he been nowhere on Mount Olympus. He didn't even know Olympus actually existed until we came to Camp Half-blood, and Annabeth and Grover has nothing to do with your Helm being stolen!"

"Don't lie to me Naruto Uzumaki. Just because you're from a respected clan and you carry the power of the Nine-Tail Fox, doesn't mean I won't make the rest of your mortal life a living torture," Hades said. "I have said nothing of the helm's disappearance, because I had no illusions that anyone on Olympus would offer me the slightest justice, the slightest help. I can ill afford for word to get out that my most powerful weapon of fear is missing. So I search for this boy myself, and when it was clear you were coming to me to deliver your threat, I did not try to stop you."

"You didn't try to stop us?" Percy asked. "But—"

"Return my helm now, or I will stop death," Hades threatened. "That is my counterproposal. I will open the earth and have the dead pour back into the world. I will make your lands a nightmare. And you, Percy Jackson— _your_ skeleton will lead my army out of Hades."

The skeletal soldiers all took one step forward, making their weapons ready.

"You're as bad as Zeus!" Percy said with anger, "You think I stole from you? That's why you sent the Furies after me?"

"Of course," Hades said.

"And the other monsters?"

Hades curled his lip. "I had nothing to do with them. I wanted no quick death for you—I wanted you brought before me alive so you might face every torture in the Fields of Punishment. Why do you think I let you enter my kingdom so easily? Now, return my property!"

"But Percy doesn't have your helm," Naruto stated.

"That's right! I came for the master bolt," Percy responded.

"Percy—" Naruto warned.

"Which you already possess!" Hades interrupted with a shout. "You came here with it, little fool, thinking you could threaten me!"

"But I didn't!"

"Open your pack, then."

Percy was hesitant at first, but then he slung it off his shoulder and unzipped it. Inside was a two-foot-long metal cylinder, spiked on both ends, humming with energy.

Naruto never saw the master bolt before now, but he knew instantly that cylinder was it.

"Percy," Annabeth said. "How—"

"I—I don't know," Percy said.

"Ares," Naruto said, "He gave you that backpack. He must have somehow got his hands on the bolt. But why—"

"You heroes are always the same," Hades said. "Your pride makes you foolish, thinking you could bring such a weapon before me. I did not ask for Zeus' master bolt, but since it is here, you will yield it to me. I am sure it will make an excellent bargaining tool. And I will keep you, Naruto Uzumaki, for the same reason. I'm sure Athena and Hermes don't want you harm, and I know my brothers fear what's inside you."

"Lord Hades, you don't understand," Naruto said, "This is a mistake. We were set up!"

"A mistake?" Hades roared.

The skeletons aimed their weapons. The furies swooped down to perch on the back of their master's throne.

 _Okay, maybe using the word mistake wasn't a good choice,_ Naruto thought.

"There's no mistake," Hades said. "I know why you have come—I know the _real_ reason you brought the bolt. You came to bargain for _her_."

Hades loosed a ball of gold fire from his palm. It exploded on the step in front of Percy, and there was Sally Jackson, frozen in a shower of gold, just as she was when the Minotaur tried to squeeze her to death.

Percy was speechless as he tried to touch her but couldn't due to the heat from the light.

"Yes," Hades said with satisfaction. "I took her. I knew, Percy Jackson, that you would come to bargain with me eventually. Return my helm, and perhaps I will let her go. She is not dead, you know. Not yet. But if you displease me, that will change."

 _That's low,_ Naruto thought, _To think I tried to defend this guy._

Percy subconsciously reached for his pockets where the four pearls were at.

"Ah, the pearls," Hades said. "Yes, my brother and his little tricks. Bring them forth, Percy Jackson."

Percy took out the four pearls.

"Only four," Hades said. "What a shame. You do realize each only protects a single person. Try to take your mother, then, little godling. And which of your friends will you leave behind to spend eternity with me? Go on. Chose. Or give me the backpack, and accept my terms."

"Percy don't," Naruto said, "This is a trick, and you know it."

"Yeah, but why?" Annabeth asked. "And the voice in the pit—"

"I don't know yet," Percy said. "But I intend to ask."

"Decide, boy!" Hades yelled.

"Percy," Grover said, "You can't give him the bolt."

"I know that."

"Leave me here," Naruto said, "Use my pearl for your mom."

"What? No way, Naruto!" Percy said.

"I'll be fine. Even Hades won't risk releasing the Nine-Tail Fox onto his domain," Naruto said. "Besides even if he does find a way to kill me with releasing the fox, Charon said it himself, when I die, I won't be spending an eternity here in the Underworld. Hades will have to send my soul back to the elemental Nations for the Shinigami to deal with."

"No, Naruto, I should do it," Grover said. "Satyrs don't have mortal souls like humans. We're immediately reincarnated when we die."

"This is ridiculous," Annabeth yelled. "I'm the best strategist, so I should stay down here."

"Stop it, guys!" Percy responded. "I know what to do." He took out the four pearls and handed three of them to each of them. "Take these."

"But Percy…" Annabeth said.

Percy turned to face his mother. When he did Naruto understood. Percy must of knew this was meant to be. Even if it was temporary—hopefully.

"I'm sorry," he told her. "I'll be back. I'll find a way."

The smug look on Hades face faded. He said, "Godling…?"

"I'll find your helm, Uncle," Percy told him. "I'll return it. Remember about Charon's pay raise."

"Do not defy me—"

"And it wouldn't hurt to play with Cerberus once in a while. He likes red rubber balls."

"Percy Jackson, you will not—"

"And see about adding intersections down here," Naruto stated, "I heard it does wonder for cars up above, so I bet it would help with the traffic of spirits down here!"

Before Hades had the time to respond, Percy shouted, "Now, guys!"

They smashed the pearls at their feet. At first nothing happened.

Hades yelled, "Destroy them!"

The army of skeletons rushed forward, swords out, guns clinking to full automatic. The Furies lunged, their whips bursting into flames.

However a burst of green light and a gust of fresh sea wind surrounded the four of them as four milky white spheres encased them and started floating them off the ground. Any weapon fired bounced harmlessly off the bubbles as Hades yelled in rage, causing the fortress the shake again.

"Look up!" Grover yelled. "We're going to crash!"

Sure enough the bubbles were taking them straight toward the stalactites, but instead of popping the bubbles and skewering them, the bubbles faded through them like it was nothing as they headed through solid ground.

* * *

 **A/N:** That spirit mention is Hazel. I hoped you guys enjoy


	21. Naruto & Percy Tag Teams Against Ares

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next chapter there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

I don't own Percy Jackson series or Naruto series, or any of the characters of either series. Nor am I the writer of the Son of the Huntress series

I'm going to remind you guys this once: If you already decided who should Hinata's mom, you can vote on the poll. Here's the results from the Poll so far:

Hebe: 19  
Aphrodite: 16  
Iris: 10  
Demeter: 6  
Tyche: 4

* * *

 **Naruto & Percy Tag Teams Against Ares**

It didn't even stop once they were at the ocean floor until they were on the surface right in the middle of Santa Monica Bay.

Naruto grabbed Grover and hauled her to a life buoy as Percy did the same for Annabeth. A curious shark was circling them, a great white about eleven feet long.

"Beat it," Percy ordered.

The shark turned and raced away.

In the distance Los Angeles was on fire, plumes of smoke rising from neighborhoods all over the city.

Eventually a Coast Guard boat picked them up, but they were too busy to keep them for long, or to wonder how four kids in street clothes had gotten out into the middle of the bay. There was a disaster to mop up. Their radios were jammed with distress calls.

They dropped the group off at the Santa Monica Pier with towels around their shoulders and water bottles that said I'M A JUNIOR COAST GUARD! And sped off to save more people.

Their clothes were sopping wet, including Percy's. Apparently he willed himself wet. Percy was also barefoot since he gave his shoes to Grover. Everyone agreed that it was better to have the Coast Guard wonder why one of them was barefoot than wonder why the other has hooves.

After reaching dry land, they stumbled down the beach, watching the city burn against a beautiful sunrise. They didn't need to check the date to know it was the Summer Solstice, and it didn't help their mood.

"I don't believe it," Annabeth said. "We went all that way—"

"Ares pulled a trick over us," Naruto said.

"Yeah," Percy said. "A strategy worthy of Athena."

"Hey," Annabeth warned.

"Let it go, Annabeth," Naruto said. "Let's go find Ares so we can get the Helm. Otherwise even if we return the bolt, Hades will stir up trouble and we can't save Mrs. Jackson."

No one argued against that logic.

It didn't take long to find Ares. It turns out Ares was waiting for them, in his black leather duster and sunglasses. He had an aluminum baseball bat propped on his shoulder. His motorcycle rumbled beside him, its headlight turning the sand red.

"Hey, kid," Ares said, seeming genuinely pleased to see Percy. "You were supposed to die."

"You tricked me," Percy said. " _You_ stole the helm and the master bolt."

Ares grinned. "Well, now, I didn't steal them personally. Gods taking each other's symbols of power—that's a big no-no. But you're not the only hero in the world who can run errands."

"Who did you use? Clarisse? She was there at the winter solstice."

The idea seemed to amuse him. "Doesn't matter. The point is, kid, you're impending the war effort. See, you've got to die in the Underworld, and your Jinchuriki friend was suppose to be locked up in the Underworld Dungeon. That way Old Seaweed will be mad at Hades for killing you. Corpse Breath will have Zeus' master bolt, so Zeus'll be mad at _him_ as well as going nuts that his brother has the power of the Tailed Beast with an added bonus of Athena and Hermes anger. And Hades is still looking for this…"

From his pocket he took out a ski cap and placed it between the handlebars of his bike. Immediately, the cap transformed into an elaborate bronze war helmet.

"The helm of darkness," Grover gasped.

"Exactly," Ares said. "Now where was I? Oh yeah, Hades will be mad at both Zeus and Poseidon, because he doesn't know who took this. Pretty soon, we got a nice little three-way slugfest going."

"But they're your family!" Annabeth protested.

Ares shrugged. "Best kind of war. Always the bloodiest. Nothing like watching your relatives fight, I always say."

"You gave Percy the backpack back in Denver," Naruto said. "The master bolt was in there the whole time."

"Yes and no," Ares said. "It's probably too complicated for your little mortal brains to follow, but the backpack is the master bolt's sheath, just morphed a bit. The bolt is connected to it, sort of like those swords you two got, and those ninja weapons you got? They always return to your pocket and pouch, right?"

Naruto and Percy glared at the god of war.

"Anyway," Ares continued, "I tinkered with the magic a bit, so the bolt would only return to the sheath once you reached the Underworld. You get close to Hades… Bingo, you got mail. If you die along the way—well, unless you got a tailed beast sealed in you it's no big deal. I still had the weapon."

"But why not just keep the master bolt for yourself?" Percy said. "Why send it to Hades?"

Ares got a twitched in his jaw. For a moment, he looked as if he was listening to another voice, deep inside his head. "Why didn't I… yeah… with that kind of firepower…"

Ares seemed to have entered into a trance that reminded Naruto of when someone was under Genjutsu.

Suddenly Ares' face cleared. "I didn't want the trouble. Better to have you caught redhanded, holding the thing."

"You're lying," Naruto said. "Sending the bolt to the Underworld was never your idea."

"Of course it was!" smoke drifted up from his sunglasses, as if they were about to catch fire.

"Someone else had ordered the theft. They send a hero to steal the two symbols." Naruto was on a roll now. "Then, when Zeus sent you to hunt him down, you caught the thief. But you didn't turn him over to Zeus. Something convinced you to let him go. You kept the two items until you heard about Percy and his quest and decided to make him complete the delivery. That thing in the pit is ordering you around."

"I am the god of war! I take orders from no one! I don't have dreams!"

Naruto stopped cold as Percy asked. "Who said anything about dreams?"

Ares looked agitated, but he tried to cover it with a smirk.

"Let's get back to the problem at hand, kids. You're alive. I can't have you taking that bolt to Olympus. You just might get those hardheaded idiots to listen to you. So I've got to kill you and send Nine-Tails Jinchuriki back to his world—maybe the Village Hidden in the Stone since they still have a grudge against his dad. Nothing personal."

He snapped his fingers. The sand exploded at his feet and out charged a wild boar, even larger and uglier than the one hung above the door of cabin five at Camp Half-Blood. The beast pawed the sand, glaring at Percy with beady eyes as it lowered its razor-sharp tusks and waited for the command to kill.

Percy stepped into the surf. "Fight me yourself, Ares."

Ares laughed with slight uneasiness. "You've got only one talent kid, running away. You don't have a chance."

"Then why don't we double his chance," Naruto said. "You versus the two of us."

"You kid? You have less a chance than your friend there," Ares said while trying to cover his worried look, "I know about your past kid, and you're no better than your friends. Even with the blood of Athena and Hermes, all you have is luck and the fox's power, and eventually even that wears out and that power will go out of control."

"Scared?" Percy asked.

"In your adolescent dreams." But his sunglasses were starting to melt from the heat of his eyes. "No direct involvement. Sorry, kids. You're not at my level."

Annabeth said, "Percy, Naruto, Run!"

The giant boar charged.

Naruto took out his _Uzushio no Ōarashi_ and press the button and Percy took out and uncapped his pen causing both swords to form in their hands. They sidestepped the boar and stabbed and slash right through the boar and destroyed it. Then they turned to Ares.

"Are you going to fight us now?" Naruto asked.

"Or are you going to hide behind another pet pig?" Percy taunt.

Ares' face was purple with rage. "Watch it, kids. I could turn you into—"

"A cockroach," Percy said. "Or a tapeworm. Yeah, I'm sure."

"I'm sure the rest of Olympus would like to hear that," Naruto said.

Flames danced along the top of his glasses. "Oh, man, you two are really asking to be smashed into a grease stop."

"If we lose, you can send me to whatever nation that might wants me dead," Naruto said.

"And you can turn me into whatever you want and take the bolt," Percy continued. "If we win, the helm and the bolt are ours to return and _you_ have to go away."

Ares sneered.

He swung the baseball bat off his shoulder. "How would you two like to get smashed: classic or modern?"

Percy and Naruto raised their swords.

"That's cool," he said. "Classic it is." The baseball bat changed into a huge two-handed sword. The hilt was a large silver skull with a ruby in its mouth.

"Don't do this guys," Annabeth said, "He's a god."

"He's a coward," Percy said.

"We don't have much of a choice, Annabeth," Naruto reminded her, "We got to get the Helm back."

Annabeth took off her necklace, with five years worth of camp beads and the ring from her father and tied it around Percy's neck.

"Reconcilation," she said, "Naruto already has the abilities of Athena, so think of this as my way of giving you a piece of Athena."

Percy nodded with a blush.

"Here, Naruto," Grover said handing Naruto a flatten piece of tin can. "Satyrs stand behind you."

"Thanks," Naruto said as he stuffed it in his pouch.

"You all done saying good-bye?" Ares came toward Percy and Naruto with his back leather duster trailing behind him and his sword glinting like fire in the sunrise. "I've been fighting for eternity, kids. My strength is unlimited and I cannot die. What have you got?"

"Our friends' support," Percy said.

"And a strong will of fire," Naruto finished.

Ares cleaved downward at the two of them. Naruto quickly applied chakra to his feet and jumped aside as the water pushed Percy into the air as he catapult over Ares, slashing his way down. However, Ares was just as quick. He twisted and deflect the strike that was meant for his spine.

Ares grinned. "Not bad, not bad."

He slashed again and forced Percy into dry land.

"Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto yelled as he made the handsign.

Two dozen shadow clones appeared around Naruto. They each form two circle around Percy and Naruto.

"You really think using shadow clones to form two Whirlpool formation will help you," Ares responded.

Ares quickly moved in and destroyed most of the clones causing a large puff of smoke that covered them.

Naruto reached into his pouch and took out a series of four kunais and four shurikans and threw them at Ares who deflected them with his sword or dodge them.

Ares moved and went for a slash at Naruto's shoulder. Naruto quickly duck and roll out of the way.

Percy then moved in for a thrust, but Ares knocked the blade out of his hand and kicked him in the chest sending him flying thirty feet in the air before landing in a sand dune.

 _This isn't going well. We need more power,_ Naruto thought. He gritted his teeth knowing what he had to do. _Okay, Fox. If you're listening, unless yo want to seem me humiliated by the god of war, lend me some of your power._

Meanwhile, cop cars arrived on the shoreline boulevard. Car doors were slamming as Cops got out.

"There, officer!" somebody yelled. "See?"

"Looks like those kids on TV… what the heck…"

"That guy's armed," another cop said. "Call for backup."

Percy rolled to one side as Ares' blade slashed.

He ran for his sword, scooped it up, and launched a swipe at Ares' face, only for Ares to deflect it again.

Percy then tried to step back in the surf, forcing Ares to follow. At the corner of his eyes, he saw what looked like a red flare of energy.

"Admit it, kid," Ares said. "You and your friend got no hope. I'm just toying with you two."

Just then Naruto appeared behind Ares at top speed, practically radiating with red chakra while at the same time didn't have any form of transformation (like he was against Neji and Gaara). Naruto slashed his katana down Ares spine, causing the god of war to roar in pain.

Ares hit Naruto in the gut with the hilt of his sword, sending Naruto flying backwards into yet another sand dune.

"Naruto!" Percy yelled.

Ares towered over Naruto with a sneer.

"Impressive. You manage to call on your demon's power without the side effects," Ares said. "Sadly it's not enough."

Ares stabbed downward cutting deep into Naruto's right shoulder.

"Ahhh!" Naruto screamed in pain.

"It's a shame I can't kill you, but it doesn't matter. Where I plan to send you after this, you wish you're dead," Ares said as he dug the sword deeper.

Naruto screamed in pain even more.

While Ares was busy with Naruto, Percy must have used the time to use the water to catapult himself into the air because he yelled, "Leave Naruto alone!" As he swipe down.

Ares manage to pull his sword out of Naruto, who screamed in pain, and deflect Percy's blow.

Meanwhile, there were more sirens as more pedestrians and cops came to watch—among them were spirits. Above the Furies were circling.

Naruto tried to get up but his shoulder was a limp from the stab wound.

 _I got to do something! We can't let Ares win,_ Naruto thought.

For a moment Naruto thought he heard the Nine-Tail Fox speak in his mind: "If you want more power, all you have to do is ask. I'll be happy to give you the power to defeat a god. Although it will require more power than you had against your teammate.

Suddenly Naruto felt a surge of energy as more red chakra entered his system.

Red chakra seeped out of his body and formed a cloak that resembles a fox with two tails forming out where his tail bone was. Naruto's eyes changed from gray-blue to red and slitted as his physical appearance go through a partial transformation, only more feral when he fought against Sasuke and the Minato. Naruto's lips were even black from the transformation.

Meanwhile Percy was struggling against Ares, going sword to sword.

A police yelled through a megaphone, "Drop the guns! Set them on the ground. Now!"

At first Percy was confused until he noticed that Ares sword was flickering, as if changing from sword to shot gun.

Ares turned to glare at the spectators.

"This is a private matter!" Ares bellowed. "Be gone!"

He swept his hand, and a wall of red flam role across the patrol cars. The police barely had time to diver for cover before their vehicles exploded. The crowd behind them scattered and screamed.

Ares roared with laughter. "Now, little hero. Let's add you to the barbecue.

He didn't have time to act because out of nowhere a fist made out of red chakra slammed into him, sending him skidding backwards into the sand.

Naruto showed up in his two-tail cloak form and started beating up Ares, who didn't have time to use his sword to deflect it. The oddest part for those watching was that Naruto's shoulder—that was severly injured before—seemed to have healed back to normal and Naruto was using it like Ares never stabbed him.

 _Naruto, what the—_ Percy thought, _Is this part of the Fox Demon's power?_

Suddenly Naruto shot Percy a look, and Percy got a clear message: _prepare an attack while I keep him busy._

Percy smiled and nodded. It was obvious that Naruto was still in control of the chakra. So if there was a limit to how much of the fox's power Naruto can control this wasn't it.

Percy thought about the waves and decided maybe to use that to his advantage.

Meanwhile, Ares was trying to inflict some kind of damage to Naruto, but Naruto dodge with ease. It was as if the tables turned.

Suddenly without warning a huge six-foot wave rocketed over Ares and Naruto.

Naruto quickly jumped out above the water just before is smashed into Ares with full force, leaving the god of war cursing and sputtering a mouth full of seaweed. Percy landed behind him and feinted for his head. Ares turned in time to raised his sword, but he was so disoriented, he didn't anticipate the trick as Percy change to a lunge and stabbed Riptide straight down into the water and into the god's heal.

The roar that followed made Hades' earthquake look like a minor event. The very sea was blasted back from Ares, leaving a wet circle of sand fifty feet wide.

The golden blood of the gods known as Ichor flowed out of the gash in Ares' heal. The slash mark on his back from Naruto's attack earlier was healing, but it was still evident and he had bruises from Naruto's beating. The expression on Ares' face was beyond hatred. It was pain, shocked, complete disbelief that he'd been wounded for the second time.

He limped over toward Percy and Naruto, muttering ancient Greek curses.

Then something stopped him.

The clouds in the sky seemed to have darkened and cover the sun, causing the light to fade. Sound and color have also drained away. A cold, heavy presence passed over the beach, slowing time, dropping the temperature to freezing, making things seem pointless.

Then the darkness lifted.

Ares looked stunned and the cloak dissipated from Naruto's body causing him to collapsed onto his knees as his body returned to it's normal form.

Police cars were burning behind them. The crowd of spectators had fled. Annabeth and Grover stood on the beach, in shock, watching the water flood back around Ares' feet, his glowing golden ichor dissipating in the tide.

Ares lowered his sword.

"You have made an enemy, godling and Nine-Tails Jinchuriki," he said. "Both of you have sealed your fate. Every time either of you raised your blade in battle, every time you hope for success, you will feel my curse. Beware, Perseus Jackson and Naruto Uzumaki. Beware."

His body began to glow.

"Percy! Naruto!" Annabeth shouted. "Don't watch!"

They turned away as Ares revealed his true immortal form.

When the light died, they looked and saw Ares was gone. The tide rolled out to reveal Hades bronze helm of darkness. Percy picked it up and walked toward Naruto, who was managing to stand up.

But before they could check on their friends, they heard the flapping of leathery wings. The three furies drifted down from the sky and landed in front of the two of them.

The middle Fury they came to known as Mrs. Dodds stepped forward. Her fangs were bared, but she looked more disappointed than threatening.

"We saw the whole thing," she hissed. "So… it truly was not you?"

Percy tossed her the helmet, which she caught in surprise.

"Return that to Lord Hades," Percy said. "Tell him the truth. Tell him to call off the war."

"And remind him of what he said about releasing Percy's mom," Naruto said. "It may of not of been returned the way he hoped, but we did return it after all."

Mrs. Dodds hesitated, then ran a forked tongue over her green leathery lips. "Live well, Percy Jackson, Naruto Uzumaki. Become a true heroes. Most importantly Naruto Uzumaki, learn to control your tailed beast's power just as your predecessors were able to do. Because if either of you do not, if you two ever come into my clutches again…"

She cackled as if savoring the idea.

"Predecessors?" Naruto responded as the three kindly ones rose on their bat wings, fluttered into the smoke filled sky, and disappeared.

After thy left, Percy and Naruto rejoined Grover and Annabeth, who were staring at them in shock and amazement.

"Percy… Naruto…" Grover said. "That was so incredibly…"

"Terrifying," said Annabeth.

"Cool!" Grover corrected.

"Thanks guys. But to be honest, I hope I don't have to use that much of the Fox's power ever again," Naruto said, "At least, not until I know I can control it's powers."

"Did you guys feel that… whatever it was?" Percy asked.

Annabeth and Grover nodded uneasily.

"It might have been the Furies, or perhaps the Nine-Tail's power."

Naruto wanted to say, _I doubt it._ Not because it might not be true, but because Naruto sensed it, and it was ancient and didn't seem to radiate from him.

Percy reclaimed his backpack and looked inside. The master bolt was still there.

Naruto also picked up his backpack, which the shoulder strap was broken off and top part was ripped from when Ares stabbed him, the leftover ambrosia and his spare clothes were hit, but everything else seemed to have missed the blade.

"I'm going to need a new backpack," Naruto muttered.

"We will," Percy said, "But first we have to get back to New York by tonight."

"That's impossible," Annabeth said, "unless we—"

"Fly," Percy agreed.

Annabeth stared at him. "Fly, like, in an airplane, which you were warned never to do lest Zeus strike you out of the sky, _and_ carrying a weapon that has more destructive power than a nuclear bomb?"

"Yeah," Percy said. "Pretty much exactly like that."

"Besides, I doubt Zeus would strike us down while we have his symbol," Naruto said.


	22. The Bolt is Returned to Zeus

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next chapter there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

I don't own Percy Jackson series or Naruto series, or any of the characters of either series. Nor am I the writer of the Son of the Huntress series

I'm going to remind you guys this once: If you already decided who should Hinata's mom, you can vote on the poll. Here's the results from the Poll so far:

Hebe: 19  
Aphrodite: 16  
Iris: 10  
Demeter: 6  
Tyche: 4

* * *

The Bolt is Returned to Zeus

Well, Percy and Naruto were cleared of all charges on them, along with Annabeth and Grover.

According to the L.A. news, the explosion at the Santa Monica beach had been caused when a crazy kidnapper fired a shotgun at a police car. He accidentally hit the gas main that had ruptured during the earthquake.

This crazy kidnapper (a.k.a. Ares) was the same man who had abducted Percy, Naruto, Annabeth, and Grover in New York and brought them across country on a ten-day odyssey of terror.

Poor Percy Jackson and Naruto Uzumaki wasn't an international criminal after all. They'd caused a commotion on that Greyhound bus in New Jersey trying to get away from his captor that the witnesses suddenly remember seeing. The crazy man had caused the explosion in the St. Louis Arch. After all, no normal kid could've done that. A concerned waitress in Denver had seen the man threatening his abductees outside her diner, gotten a friend to take a photo, and notified the police. Finally, brave Percy Jackson and Naruto Uzumaki had manage to steal two guns from their captor in Los Angeles and battled him shotgun-to-rifle on the beach. Police had arrived just in time. But in the spectacular explosion, five police cars had been destroyed and the captor fled. No fatalities had occurred, and Percy Naruto and their two friends were safely in police custody.

The reporters fed them their story, and Naruto even had to fight back a strong urge when the reporter said that Naruto wasn't really stabbed and was just putting up a show to distract their captor, and that the sudden surge red chakra never really happened and that Naruto was just experiencing a natural Fight-and-flight response. During the whole interview, they just nodded and acted tearful and exhausted, and played victimized kids for the cameras.

"All I want," Percy said, choking back his tears, "is to see my loving stepfather again. Every time I saw him on TV, calling me delinquent punk, I knew… somehow… we would be okay. And I know he'll want to reward each and every person in this beautiful city of Los Angeles with a free major appliance from his store. Here's the phone number."

Naruto bit his lip and tried his very hardest not to laugh at that. He knew Gabe wasn't going to like it, but Percy did put up an excellent show.

The police and reporters were so moved that thy passed around the hat and raised money for four tickets on the next plane to New York. To top that off, Naruto was promised that his trust fund would be open for him to use once he gets back to New York. Which meant Naruto wouldn't have to use his LotusCash card again. Yet, Naruto kept it for other plans that he kept to himself. Still, the people were also kind enough to get Naruto a new backpack since his was damage from the battle.

They manage to get on a plane and take off without a problem, although Percy looked like he was living a nightmare the whole trip. Every spot of turbulence he turned chalky white and clenched his hands on the armrest.

At the same time, Naruto was enjoying the view. It was his first plane ride, and despite them risking Zeus' wrath, he was having blast. Most of the passengers were staring at Naruto like he'd was crazy, and poor Grover—who was sitting next to him and still was a pretty bad liar—had to lie about how Naruto always wanted to fly but never could until now. Luckily the passengers believed it considering how Naruto was behaving and passed off the signs Grover shows when he lies as him being embarrassed.

Finally, they touched down safely at La Guardia. Naruto already guess that the local press was waiting for them outside security, so the four of them stayed back until the plane emptied, and Naruto quickly created four clones to deal with the press so they can sneak out.

Once safe they split up at the taxi stand with Annabeth and Grover going back to Camp Half-Blood to inform Chiron what happened, and Naruto and Percy going to Olympus to return the bolt. At first Percy wanted to go alone, but Naruto insisted that he should have some backup.

Plus. Naruto wouldn't admit it, but he wanted to see Mount Olympus and find out what the waitress at the Lotus Casino said was true about their being an Ichirakus there. If there was—well, Mount Olympus might be expecting a certain Jinchuriki every winter solstice soon.

Naruto and Percy hopped in their own taxi and headed to Manhattan. Within thirty minutes later, they walked inside the lobby of the Empire State Building.

The two of them must have looked like two homeless kids, with their tattered clothes, Percy's scraped-up face (Most of Naruto's injuries had already healed up) and neither slept since their time in the Inhumane Animal Transport truck six days ago—which literally seemed like twenty-four hours to them since they spend five of those days in the Lotus Casino where time had slowed down to make five days only seem like a few hours.

Percy went up to the guard at the front desk and said, "Six hundredth floor."

The guy was reading a huge book with a picture of a wizard in front that Naruto recognized as one of the Harry Potter books. He never got into reading the book before due to his dyslexia, but he heard of the movies and he bet if he could get a Greek translated version, he might enjoy it the books as well.

The guard looked up from his book and said. "No such floor, kiddos."

"We need an audience with Zeus," Percy said.

He gave him a vacant smile. "Sorry?"

"You heard him," Naruto said, "We got an item of his that needs to be returned. Show him Percy."

Percy slipped off his backpack and unzipped the top.

The guard looked inside at the metal cylinder. At first he was confused, but then his face turned pale. "That isn't…"

"Yes, it is," Percy promised. "You want me take it out and—"

"No! No!" He scrambled out of his seat, fumbled around his desk for a key card, then handed it to Naruto. "Insert this in the security slot. Make sure nobody else is in the elevator with you."

"Thank you for your service," Naruto said as they headed to the elevators.

As soon as the elevator doors closed, Naruto slipped the key card into the slot. The card disappeared and a new red button that said 600 appeared in the console. Percy pressed it and the two waited, and waited. Muzak played. "Raindrops keep falling on my head…" Finally, _ding_. The doors slid open and the two stepped out only to have a big surprise.

They were standing on a narrow stone walkway in the middle of the air. Below them was Manhattan, from the height of an airplane. In front of them, white marble steps wound up the spine of a cloud, that lead to a road that wound up onto what seemed like a decapitated peak of a mountain, its summit covered with snow. Clinging to the mountainside were dozens of multileveled palaces in a form of a city—all with white columned porticos, gilded terraces, and bronze brazier glowing with a thousand fires. Along with it there seemed to be a stone amphitheater, precariously perched gardens and olive trees and rosebushes, an open-air market filled with colorful tent, a hippodrome and a coliseum. It was like they were looking at an ancient Greek city thousands of years ago before it became a ruins.

After admiring and getting use to the idea that the mountain was the real deal, Percy and Naruto made their way through Olympus. They passed some giggling wood nymphs who threw olives at Percy from the garden but none at Naruto. From what they can guess from some of them pointing at Naruto whispering that it might have something to do with the fact that the Olive Tree being a symbol of Naruto's grandmother Athena. That or Ares wasn't joking earlier about Naruto's increase popularity on Olympus after Naruto's announcement on Hephaestus-TV.

Hawkers in the market offered to sell the two of them ambrosia-on-a-stick, a new shield, and a genuine glitter-weave replica of the Golden Fleece, as seen on Hephaestus-TV. There was even an offer of a new items, a familiar yellow toy lightning bolt that makes zapping noise when gripped. When asked, they said they started selling toys like that to represent the day most of Olympians laughed over a demigod's peace offering. When Naruto and Percy heard that, they fought back the urge to laugh themselves.

Naruto stopped when he caught onto a familiar scent and turned to a little restaurant booth. The sign was in Ancient Greek, but Naruto was able to decipher it: _Olympian Ichiraku_.

 _There it is,_ Naruto thought as he was about to head in and try it.

However, Percy grabbed Naruto by the collar of his shirt and pulled him away. "Come on, Naruto. My dad and Zeus aren't going to wait for us forever.

Naruto complained as Percy dragged the blonde away from what he been longing to try out since the Lotus Casino.

In the park, the nine muses were tuning their instruments for a concert in the park while a small crowd gathered—satyrs and naiads and a bunch of teenagers that Percy and Naruto guess were minor gods and goddesses. Naruto guess word already got out about their success since everybody seemed to be in a festive mood instead of worried about the impending civil war.

The duo climbed the main road toward the big palace at the peak. Needless to say, it was a reverse copy of the palace in the Underworld. Instead of black and bronze, everything was glittered white and gold.

"He must have design it to look almost identical since he is rarely welcome here," Naruto said.

"Makes you feel bad for him, doesn't it?" Percy asked.

"Yeah, but not guilty since I was the only one who didn't point the finger at Hades," Naruto said.

"Thanks for the reminder," Percy muttered as he had hopes Naruto wouldn't boast about being right about Hades not being the one responsible for the missing bolt.

The steps led up to a central courtyard that lead to the throne room which was so big it made the Grand Central Station look like a broom closet. Massive columns rose to a dome ceiling, which was gilded with moving constellations.

Twelve thrones, built for beings the size of Hades, were arranged in an inverted U, just like the cabins at Camp Half-Blood. An enormous fire crackled in the central hearth pit, which Naruto guess was where Hestia still tends to. Thinking of the goddess of the Hearth reminded Naruto of her offer to him… to be her champion. She made it clear that he can wait until after the quest to decide, but he half expected the Goddess of Hearth to be there, wanting to see if Naruto have decided.

The Thrones were empty except for two at the end: the head throne on the right, and the one on it's immediate left. Neither Percy nor Naruto had to be told which of the two gods sitting there in their giant form—just as Hades was—were which as they approach them.

Zeus, the Lord of the Gods, sat on a simple throne of solid platinum. He wore a dark blue pinstriped suit and had a well-trimmed beard, marbled gray and black like storm clouds. His face was proud and handsome and grim. Naruto expect his eyes to be electric blue like his daughter: Thalia, but he guess Zeus' eyes depend on the weather because they were rainy gray instead

The god sitting next to him was obviously his brother, just dressed differently. Sally was dead on when she said Percy inherit his father's dark hair and sea-green eyes, because the god known as Poseidon had just that as well as a brooding look that got Percy labeled a rebel only with sun crinkes on his face that told them he smiled a lot too. He also had skin that was deeply tanned, hands scarred like an old-time fisherman's. He wore leather sandals, khaki Bermuda shorts, and a Tommy Bahama shirt with coconuts and parrots all over it.

Poseidon's throne was a deep-sea fisherman's chair. It was the simple swiveling kind, with a black leather seat and a built in holster like the ones used to hold fishing poles, but instead held a bronze trident that flicker with green light around the tips.

The gods weren't moving or speaking, but there was tension in the air, as if they'd just finished an argument.

Naruto was a bit disappointed his grandparents weren't here, as he had a small bit of hope to meet them, but he kind of expected that there was a small chance Athena and Hermes wouldn't be here.

Percy approached his father first while Naruto approached Zeus and bowed.

"Father," Percy said.

"Great-Grandfather Zeus," Naruto greeted.

Zeus spoke up, but mostly to Percy. "Should you not address the master of the house first like your friend, boy?"

Percy kept his head.

"Peace, brother," Poseidon finally said. "The boy defers to his father. This is only right. Just as it is right for his friend to defer to you as his _great-grandfather_." Poseidon said great-grandfather like it was unusual way for someone to refer Zeus as, which Naruto guess it was, but he wasn't the type to refer to someone as 'Lord' that easy.

"You still claim him then?" Zeus asked, menacingly. "You claim this child whom you sired against our sacred oath?"

"I have admitted my wrongdoing," Poseidon said. "Now I would hear him and his _friend_ speak."

 _Oh, Percy is not going to take that well,_ Naruto thought.

"I have spared him once already," Zeus grumbled. "Daring to fly through my domain… pah! I should have blasted him out of the sky for impudence."

"And you would have risk destroying your own master bolt and releasing the Nine-Tail Fox into our world," Poseidon reminded him. "Let us hear the two out, brother."

Zeus grumbled some more. "I shall listen," he decided. "Then I shall make up my mind whether or not to cast this boy down to from Olympus, and send the other one back to his own world."

Naruto flinched when he was reminded of the fact why he wasn't killed yet, but at the same time was glad that Zeus didn't refer him as a Jinchuriki, or vessel, or monster or any of the nicknames he knew all too well.

"Perseus," Poseidon said. "Look at me."

Percy did as he was told, as did Naruto. Naruto wasn't exactly good with reading expressions, but judging from Poseidon's, Naruto guess that the Lord of the Sea was uncertain of how to feel about his son, which he guess his friend felt the same about his own father.

"Address Lord Zeus, boys," Poseidon told both of them. "Tell him your story."

And so they did. Everything that happened from the moment they left camp to after their battle with Ares. Naruto didn't bring up about how the fox's power form a cloak with two tails, but judging from their expressions, they got an idea.

Percy took out the metal cylinder, which began sparking in it's owner's presence, and laid it at the Sky God's feet.

There was a long silence only broken by the crackle of the hearth fire.

Zeus opened his palm. The lightning bolt flew into it. As he closed his fist, the metallic points flared with electricity, until he was holding what looked more like the classic thunderbolt, a twenty-foot javelin of arcing, hissing energy that made both Naruto's and Percy's hair rise.

"I sense the boys tells the truth," Zeus muttered. "But that Ares would do such a thing… it is most unlike him."

"He is proud and impulsive," Poseidon said. "It runs in the family."

"Lords," Percy said, "Ares didn't act alone. Someone else—something else—came up with the idea."

Naruto and Percy described their dreams, and the feeling they had on the beach, that momentary breath of evil that seemed to stop the world and made Ares back off.

"In the dreams," Percy said, "the voice told me to bring the bolt to the Underworld. Ares hinted that he'd been having dreams, too. I think he was being used, just as I was, to start a war."

"You are accusing Hades, after all?" Zeus asked.

"No, Lord Zeus. Lord Hades had nothing to do with it," Naruto spoke up deciding not to bring up about how the Helm of Darkness was stolen, "Besides what we felt was more like the feeling we felt when we were at the entrance of Tartarus. It was something more powerful and evil… something older than the gods. Most importantly, whatever was down there, I think it disturbed even the Nine-Tail Fox while sealed inside me."

Poseidon and Zeus looked at each other. They had a quick, intense discussion in Ancient Greek. The only word Naruto and Percy caught onto was _Father_.

Poseidon made some kind of suggestion, but Zeus cut him off. Poseidon tried to argue. Zeus held up his hand angrily.

"We will speak of this no more," Zeus said. "I must go personally purify this thunderbolt in the waters of Lemnos, to remove the human taint from its metal."

He rose and looked at Percy and Naruto. His expression softened just a fraction of a degree. "You two have done me a service, boys. Few heroes could have accomplished so much."

"We had help, sir," Percy said. "Grover Underwood and Annabeth Chase—"

"To show my thanks, I shall spare your life." Zeus then turned to Naruto, "I'll also let you stay in this world, Naruto Uzumaki. I sense you have wind infinity and the potential to learn how to use lightning affinity in the future, and as much as I hate to have a demigod of your standards in this world, for the sake of my son and daughter I have no choice but to trust you use the element of my domain a bit more wisely from now on. But if you prove to be a threat with the Nine-Tail's power or misuse the wind infinity against Olympus, I will personally send you back to your world to deal with the threat that waits for you there."

"Yes sir," Naruto said.

"As for you, Perseus Jackson," Zeus said, "I do not trust you. I do not like what your arrival means for the future of Olympus. But for the sake of the peace in the family, I shall let you live."

"Um… thank you, sir," Percy said.

"Do not presume to fly again. Do not let me find you here when I return. Otherwise you shall taste this bolt. And it shall be your last sensation."

Thunder shook the palace. With a blinding flash of lightning, Zeus was gone, leaving the two demigods with Poseidon.

"I see where Dionysus gets his flair for dramatic exits from," Naruto joked.

Poseidon tried to hide a smirk. "Zeus has always had a flair for dramatic exits."

Naruto could sense that Poseidon wants a private talk with Percy. "Well, if you don't mind me, I got a ramen stand I heard it's similar to the one I use to hang out at in the leaf village, and I'm dying to check it out. It's a pleasure to meet you, Lord Poseidon; and Percy, I'll meet you at the elevator."

Naruto did a quick respectful bow to Poseidon that oddly enough resembles the bow he did back in the water park while announcing out on Hephaestus TV before leaving. On the way Naruto could hear Poseidon said: "So that's Athena's and Hermes' grandson. He's _different_ from what I expect."

"You have no idea," Percy responded.

Naruto smirked as he left.

…

Once out of the palace, Naruto headed through the park searching for _Olympians' Ichiraku_.

It took him a while before he found it, but Naruto did find it. Odd enough, the stand was more like the actual restaurant than the one in the Casino.

"Hello! How may I serve you?" the nymph said.

"One big bowl of Miso Ramen with everything on it as long as it's not Nectar or Ambrosia," Naruto said.

"Do you have any drachmas to pay for it?"

"Uh—" Naruto reached into his pockets for a drachma only to remember he gave Charon all the drachmas he had left.

"It's on me," someone said.

A beautiful woman with long black hair in an elegant white dress came in and sat down next to Naruto.

"Yes, my lady," the nymph said as she started preparing Naruto's Ramen.

"Hey, thanks," Naruto said.

The lady nodded. "I normally don't come here, but I figured you would have come here," the lady said. "After all, it's the one place you felt most welcomed back in the leaf."

"Here you go," the nymph handed Naruto his bowl, but Naruto was too shock to hear her.

"Grandmother Athena?" Naruto responded.

The lady turned to Naruto and he saw she had intense gray eyes that resembles those of Cabin Six—ones that looked as if she was thinking a million things at once.

"Hello Naruto," she greeted.

Naruto bit his lip and tears flowed down his eyes. Naruto jumped out of his seat and hugged his grandmother.

The nymph that served him stared at him, as if expecting the goddess to smite the human boy for touching her without permission, but Athena waved it off. She speculated that Naruto would have reacted this way when they meet.

"Grandmother, I been wanting to meet you for a year, you know," Naruto said as he released himself. "Is Grandpa Hermes here too? I got so much I want to ask both of you!"

"Calm down Naruto," Athena advised. "I'll be happy to answer your questions. As for the one about your grandfather, sadly, Hermes is on an errand for Olympus. Making sure there is no more doubt on mortal minds about yours and the Sea spawn's innocents about the destruction caused from your battles. But I assure you, Hermes is looking forward to the day you meet him. For now enjoy your ramen. I feel we won't have too much time to talk."

Naruto nodded in understanding, although disappointed that he couldn't meet his grandfather. Naruto took his chopsticks and started eating his ramen that his grandmother paid for.

Inwardly, Naruto was excited to find that the Ramen tasted almost exactly like the ones in the leaf, but Naruto tried to hide it in front of his grandmother. Naruto finished it quickly, but at the same time trying not to be rude.

"Thanks, grandmother," Naruto said.

"I believe you have questions." Athena said.

Naruto nodded. "First off, I want to know why you and Hermes so long to bring me here?"

"We brought you here because your life was in danger," Athena said.

"With the Akatsuki, right?"

"Part of it," Athena said.

Naruto's eyes widened. "Whoa, wait, if you're talking about the villagers—I'm pretty sure the Third Hokage had made laws to protect me even after his death…"

"I'm not talking about the villagers," Athena said. "Naruto, there's much more about what's really going on than you have realize. Some of which I cannot tell you without interfering with your destiny any more than Hermes and I already have."

"My destiny?" Naruto asked.

"You will realize it in time," Athena said.

Naruto sighed and accepted the answer. "Grandmother, there's something else… Lady Hestia offered me to be her champion."

"I'm aware," Athena said. "And what she said about what Hermes and I told her is true."

Naruto nodded. "…too be honest, I don't know if I can do it. I mean, I'm honored Hestia offered me it, but…"

"You're not sure if you can live up to the expectations she would have for you as her champion?" Athena asked.

Naruto nodded.

"Naruto Uzumaki, first off, you should know, Hestia doesn't do what she does without a reason," Athena said. "She never picked a champion before now, because she never found one so willing to stand up for what they believe in. For her to decide to approach you only shows that you already have what it takes to be the Champion of the Hearth. Even if one of the reasons I do not agree with."

Naruto flinched as he figured Athena was referring to his friendship to Percy.

"If there's one thing you have in common with that sea spawn, it's your shared fatal flaw," Athena continued.

"Fatal flaw?" Naruto asked.

"It's a trait that every hero has that clouds their judgement at time and can cause them to make mistakes that can cost," Athena said. "Your flaw is that your personal loyalty, just like your father. He was willing to risk everything to make sure you and the leaf village was safe."

"And Percy has the same flaw as me," Naruto responded.

Athena nodded, "Unfortunately."

Naruto smiled, mostly because he had the same flaw as his dad.

"The conversation at the palace is coming to an end," Athena said.

"I guess that's my cue to go," Naruto said getting up.

"Yes but before you go, show me your seal," Athena said.

"What?" Naruto asked.

Athena gave him a look that told Naruto he better do it. Naruto pulled up his shirt and channel his chakra to his stomach. When he did, the seal appeared.

Athena touched it as she inspect it.

 _An eight trigram seal, with extra guards for Naruto's protection. Minato, you really have out done yourself, my son. No doubt you learned it from Kushina though,_ Athena thought with slight pride before frowning, _It's weakening though. Unless Naruto can accept and control the hatred in his heart, seal could weaken even further. However, I sense some hidden safe guards deep in the seal's formula. Perhaps it won't be revealed unless the seal is weaken to a certain point._

"Is everything okay?" Naruto asked getting worried.

Athena focus back to her grandson. "Your seal appears to be weakening, but other than that, everything is in order. I suggest you don't weaken the seal pass three tails, though."

Naruto nodded. Just then Athena felt a power signature leaving. "It seems it's time for you to go, Naruto. Just remember my warning about choosing your friends and if you insist on hanging out with the sea spawn, at least make sure he doesn't do anything that harms Annabeth."

Naruto nodded not wanting to argue against Athena.

"One last thing, you did both Hermes and I well during your quest," Athena said, "As did Annabeth."

Naruto smiled. "Thanks—oh, and grandmother, one more thing. Annabeth told me how you helped her father get his degree in Harvard, and I thought I should ask you a small favor."

Naruto told Athena his favor. At first Athena frowned, but after a while of thinking about it. "Very well," Athena said, "I'll see what I can do to help."

Naruto gave her one last hug as thanks as well as goodbye before leaving.

…

Naruto met with Percy at the Elevator.

"You look happy. I take it that ramen stand was good?" Percy asked.

"Yeah, you could say that," Naruto said, "So how did your talk go?"

Percy shrugged as he told Naruto the basic details, leaving out some personal stuff. But he did tell Naruto the good news about Sally.

"So Hades kept his promise," Naruto said.

"That's what I been told," Percy said. "But I'm going home to find out. Naruto, you can go back to the Camp—"

"No way! You're not getting rid of me that easy," Naruto said, "I still got to make Gabe pay for the torment he made us go through."

Naruto popped his knuckles which made Percy chuckled. "Then we better get back down to Manhattan," Percy said.

…

Once the two of them made it back to the streets of Manhattan, they caught a taxi to Percy's apartment.

Percy wouldn't admit it but he was anxious when he rang the door bell. Sure enough Sally was the one who answered and when she saw her son and Naruto, the weariness and worry evaporated from her face.

"Percy! Oh, thank goodness. Oh, my baby."

She crushed the air right out of Percy as she cried and ran her hands through his hair before pulling Naruto into the hug as well, much to his embarrassment.

She told them she'd just appeared at the apartment that morning, scaring Gabe half out of his wits. She didn't remember anything since the Minotaur, and couldn't believe it when Gabe told her that Percy and Naruto were wanted criminals, traveling across the country and blowing up national monuments. She'd been going out of her mind with worry all day because she hadn't heard the news. Gabe had forced her to go into work, saying she had a month's salary to make up and she'd better get started.

Naruto and Percy wanted to go in there find Gabe and beat him up, but they decided to first tell Sally what really happened. Sally had a few laughs when she heard some of the stunts Naruto pulled just for the laugh.

Naruto even decided to let her in on his little secret—part of it he never got to explain during the night the Minotaur. Sally was shock to hear about Naruto being a Jinchuriki from another world, but she was also grateful that Naruto trusted her enough to tell her about it.

They were about to tell her about their fight with Ares when Gabe's voice interrupted from the living room. "Hey, Sally! That meat loaf done yet or what?"

Sally closed her eyes. "He isn't going to be happy to see you two. The store got half a million phone calls today from Los Angeles… something about free appliances."

Naruto chuckled as Percy said: "Oh, yeah. About that…"

She managed a weak smile. "Just don't make him angrier, all right? Come on you two."

Gabe however didn't wait for them to come to him as he came to them and when he saw Naruto and Percy, his cigar dropped out of his mouth. His face got redder than lava. "You two! You got the nerve coming here, you little punks. I thought the police—"

"He's not a fugitive, neither of them are," Sally interjected. "Isn't that wonderful, Gabe?"

Gabe looked back between her Naruto and Percy. He didn't seem to think Percy homecoming with Naruto was so wonderful.

"Bad enough I had to give back your life insurance money, Sally," he growled. "Get me the phone. I'll call the cops."

"Gabe, no!"

He raised his eyebrows. "Did you just say _'no'_? You think I'm gonna put up with this punk and his delinquent orphaned friend again? I can still press charges against him for ruining my Camaro."

"But—"

Gabe raised his hand and Sally flinched. But before he could strike, Naruto moved in and caught his fist. Naruto's eyes flickered to red and fox like as he closed his hand tightly on Gabe's hand, causing him to scream in pain before Naruto kneed him in the gut so hard Gabe passed out.

Percy, who was standing protectively in front of his mother whistled in amazement as Sally stared in total shock.

"Percy, you and your mom go pack your stuff," Naruto said, "You're not going to stay with this pathetic excuse of a human anymore."

Sally looked like she wanted to argue, but Percy just gave her a look saying 'You don't need to protect me anymore'.

Sally nodded reluctantly and they headed inside the apartment to pack.

As they left Naruto noticed a familiar package next to their apartment door with a return address and a note saying: _I trust you know what to do with this, Grandson of Hermes and Athena._

Naruto didn't need to look to find out who left it.

Sally and Percy came back, both carrying a bag full of clothes. Naruto threw them his spared keys and told them where his apartment was. Percy nodded thanks and left with his mom, telling Naruto he would see him back in camp.

Once they were out of sight, Naruto opened the package and carefully took out what was inside before hiding it behind his back.

When Gabe woke up he found saw Naruto crouching over him with anger in his eyes. "You never learn, do you Gabe? If you did, you wouldn't be in the situation you are now. You better pray that Hades is lenient to you."

Before Gabe could respond, Naruto took out the severed head of medusa and with her eyes wide opened cause Gabe to shiver and cry out in fear before the man was completely turned into stone.

 _Hades, I doubt you're in the mood to listen to me, but I promise to include you in my next offering if you do me a favor and make sure the spirit of Gabe Ugliano goes to the Fields of Punishment,_ Naruto prayed.


	23. The Thief is Found Out

A/N:Sorry for reposting this chapter but I want to make sure all things are cleared up that I forgot to mention. In this chapter and the next chapter there will be parts based off of SoulReaperCrewe's Son of the Huntress: The Lightning Thief

I don't own Percy Jackson series or Naruto series, or any of the characters of either series. Nor am I the writer of the Son of the Huntress series

I'm going to remind you guys this once: If you already decided who should Hinata's mom, you can vote on the poll. Here's the results from the Poll so far:

Hebe: 21  
Aphrodite: 18  
Iris: 10  
Demeter: 7  
Tyche: 5

The Polls won't end until I get to the point of the Sea of Monsters where Hinata appears in.

* * *

 **The Thief is Found Out**

After Naruto was done, Naruto decided to check on Sally and Percy. Needless to say Sally was happy to see Naruto was okay and was glad that Gabe was no longer part of their lives.

Sally thanked Naruto and said she would not stay in the apartment for long. At least until she can get a decent apartment for her and Naruto. But before Naruto Naruto and Percy left, Naruto gave Sally the LotusCash Card he saved and told her how it have infinite money.

"You can use it to pay for a decent apartment and pay for Percy's new school," Naruto said, "Then you can destroy the card."

"Naruto, I can't take this," Sally said.

"Just think of it as my way of thanking you for dealing with Gabe long enough to protect Percy," Naruto said, "Besides, I have my trust fund my grandparents left me, so I really don't need the money."

Sally smiled with teary eyes as she hugged Naruto as thanks before he and Percy left.

…

Annabeth and Grover waited for Naruto and Percy to return before they entered camp. It only felt right that since the four of them left together, the four of them should return together.

Of course when the campers found out they made it back alive, there was a huge celebration. After all, they were the first heroes to return alive to Half-Blood Hill since Luke, and Naruto had brought honor back to Cabin Eleven.

According to camp traditions, they had to wear laurel wreaths to a big feast prepared in their honor, which of course included Ramen for Naruto. Naruto kept his silent promise to Hades and made an extra scrapping to the Lord of the Underworld. When he did, Naruto caught the scent of rotting corpses that faded before anyone else notice. Then they were led a procession down to the bonfire, where they got to burn their own burial shrouds their cabins had made for them in their absence.

Annabeth's shroud was so beautiful—gray silk with embroidered owls. Percy made a comment that it seem a shame not to burry her in it, which she slapped him in the back of the head for it.

Being the grandson of Hermes and Athena, both Cabin Six and Eleven worked on Naruto's shroud. It was gray silk like Annabeth's, but it the owls were painted orange along with Caduceus and winged shoes, and even a leaf village symbol. Stoll Brothers also included a: Prank Master of Cabin Eleven! In bright orange. Naruto felt shame that he had to burn his.

Percy was the only one all too happy to burn his. Being the only son of Poseidon, he didn't have any cabin mates, so the Ares cabin had volunteered to make his shroud, and needless to say they showed their anger toward him through the shroud. They'd taken an old bedsheet and painted smiley faces with X'ed-out eyes around the border, and the word LOSER painted really big in the middle.

The Apollo cabin led a sing along and passed s'mores. Everyone from Hermes and Athena Cabin as well as Grover's satyr buddies hanged around Percy. Although most of Grover's buddies were admiring his brand-new searcher's license he'd received from the Council of Cloven Elders. Naruto turned out to be right about Grover earning his license for surviving the Underworld.

After a couple of songs, Naruto told them stories from the elemental nations including about a certain demon of the that once slaughtered his own classmates and became Genin. Naruto left out the part that Zabuza was the son of Ares. Not only because most of Ares' kids were angry with him as well for defeating their father, but after fighting Ares, Naruto felt he was right about Zabuza was a being better man than Ares is as a god.

Dionysus made a welcome-home speech which wasn't very welcoming. In fact, it was mostly an insult to Percy. If Dionysus knew about Naruto's little insult back at the truck, he didn't let it on.

After everything, everyone headed to their respected cabins for the night. However, Naruto couldn't sleep at first. He knew tomorrow he would have to confront Hestia about his decision. It was an hour after lights out that Naruto went to bed.

The next morning, Naruto woke up before everyone else like usual, and headed out of cabin six. Naruto headed toward the amphitheater.

At first it seemed deserted, but as Naruto got closer he saw a familiar eight-year-old girl tending to the flames: Hestia.

Naruto froze, as if deciding whether to move forward or not. But the goddess must have sensed him because she turned around and smiled at Naruto.

"Naruto. I'm glad you came," Hestia said.

"Uh—yes ma'am," Naruto said.

"Come, sit with me," Hestia patted the spot next to her.

Naruto nodded and walked over and took his seat.

"So have you considered my offer?" Hestia asked.

"I have, and I have a question," Naruto said.

"Ask away," Hestia said.

"I know you always do things for a reason, and you already answered this, but I must ask, why me?" Naruto asked, "You must have known about what was sealed in me—the risk of it."

Hestia smiled. "I understand and you're right, I know about the Nine-Tails, but I also know your parents had trust you with the Fox-Demon's power even when most of the other villagers didn't want to. That's why I want to help you live up to your parent's expectations and be the hero you're meant to be, even if it's indirectly."

Naruto nodded, believing every word she said. "Okay."

Hestia raised an eyebrow. "You agree."

"Yes," Naruto said, "So how do I become your champion?"

"All you have to do is swear your loyalty to me as my champion," Hestia said.

Naruto sighed. "I, Naruto Uzumaki: grandson of Athena and Hermes, swear my loyalty to Hestia: goddess of Hearth my loyalty as her champion."

The flames in the hearth grew and Naruto felt stronger and warmer.

"I feel different," Naruto said.

Hestia nodded. "It's expected. Over time you'll discover some of your new abilities that comes with your sworn loyalty. Until they do I gathered these for you."

Hestia summoned up a few scrolls and handed them to Naruto. Naruto one of them and found that they were fire style jutsus.

"I also want you to know if you ever need my advice all you have to do is come up here," Hestia said.

Naruto nodded. "Thank you, Lady Hestia."

Hestia nodded and walked into the fire before disappearing.

…

A week passed since Naruto became a champion of Hestia. He only let Percy Annabeth and Grover know that he accepted, although he had a strange feeling that Chiron knew about it.

Percy and Naruto finally got a letter from Percy's mom, telling them she has found an available apartment not far from where Naruto lived and found a private school for Percy incase he decided to come home. She also surprised them with the news that she was accepted into NYU to go for her degree in writing. Apparently the dean there got word about her goals as a writer and agreed to take her in.

There was a small extra note at the end just for Naruto that said: _I figured you pulled some strings with your grandmother, Naruto. Thank you._ _P.S. I got rid of your 'sculpting tools' for you. I figured you didn't want to deal with that either._

…

On the Fourth of July, the whole camp gathered at the beach for a fireworks display by Cabin Nine. Naruto and Percy heard from Annabeth that the fireworks were set up by Hephaestus kids so form animated frames in the sky fired off from Patriot missiles a barge offshore.

As Percy Annabeth and Naruto were spreading out a picnic blanket, Grover showed up to tell them good-bye. He was dressed in his usual jeans and T-shirt and sneakers, but in the last few weeks he started to look older, almost high-school age. His goatee had gotten thicker. He'd put on weight. His horns had grown at least an inch, so he now had to wear a rasta cap all the time to pass as human.

"I'm off," he said. "I just came to say… well, you know."

Annabeth gave him a hug and told him to keep his fake feet on. Naruto patted Grover in the back. Percy asked him where he was going to search first.

"Kind of a secret," he said, looking embarrassed. I wish you could come with me, guys, but humans and Pan…"

"We understand," Naruto said.

"You got enough tin cans for the trip?" Annabeth asked.

"Yeah."

"And you remember your reed pipes?"

"Jeez, Annabeth," he grumbled even though he wasn't annoyed. "You're like an old mama goat."

He gripped his walking stick and slung a backpack over his shoulder like a hitchhiker on an American highway. Nothing like the little runty boy Percy and Naruto used to defend from bullies back at Yancy.

"Well," he said, "wish me luck."

He gave Annabeth another hug and clapped Naruto and Percy on the shoulder before heading back through the dunes.

Fireworks exploded to life overhead: Hercules killing the Nemean lion, Artemis chasing the boar, George Washington (who turned out to be a son of Athena), crossing the Delaware.

"Hey, Grover!" Naruto and Percy called.

He turned at the edge of the woods.

"Wherever you're going—" Percy started.

"I hope they make good enchiladas," Naruto finished.

Grover grinned, and then he was gone, the trees closing around him.

"We'll see him again," Annabeth said

"Yeah, as the first satyr to come back," Naruto agreed.

Percy nodded but he wasn't certain.

…

July passed and Naruto spend his days training to master his new fire style jutsus. Of course he did it in at the beach, facing the water, so he wouldn't harm the trees.

When he wasn't training on his new fire style jutsu and trying to figure out his new powers, he was in the forges working with Beckendorf on making some new ninja weapons. Naruto had ideas on a demon wind Shurikan that takes hidden form as a metal band, and trench knives like what Asuma had that took form of bronze knuckles unless gripped.

Percy spent his days devising new strategies for capture-the-flag and making alliances with other cabins to keep the flag from Ares' hands.

Finally the end of the summer session came and the campers had one last meal together. They burned part of their dinner to the gods. At the bonfire, the senior counselors awarded the end-of-summer beads.

Naruto's and Percy's first bead turned out to be pitch black, with four symbols. One was a leaf village symbol with a trident, an owl and Caduceus, each shimmering. Naruto had his necklace placed around his neck along with his First Hokage necklace proudly.

"The choice was unanimous," Luke announced. "This bead commemorates the first Son of the Sea and Legacy of Athena and Hermes from the elemental nations at this camp!"

The entire camp got to their feet and cheered. Even Ares cabin felt obliged to stand. Athena's and Hermes cabin steered Annabeth and Naruto to the front so they could share in the applause. For once since he came to this world, Naruto felt like he was at home, and he knew Percy felt the same.

…

The next morning, Naruto found a form letter on his bedside table filled out by Dionysus:

Dear  Nagato Uzushio ,

If you intend to stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round, you must inform the Big House by noon today. If you do not announce your intensions, we will assume you have vacated your cabin or died a horrible death. Cleaning harpies will begin work at sundown. They will be authorized to eat any unregistered campers. All personal articles left behind will be incinerated in the lava pit.

Have a nice day!

Mr. D (Dionysus)

Camp Director, Olympian Council #12

Naruto after a bit of training, Naruto decided to run laps around the woods.

Naruto was on his tenth lap when he notice a two campers talking. More accurate: Luke and Percy. Naruto immediately knew something was wrong whne he noticed a scorpion coming at Percy.

"You're as crazy as Ares," Percy shouted.

Luke's eyes flared. "Ares is a fool. He never realized the true master he was serving. If I had time, Percy, I could explain. But I'm afraid you won't live that long."

Naruto had no clue what was going on, but he hid as he listened.

"Good-bye, Percy. There is a new Golden Age coming. You won't be part of it."

Luke slashed his sword in an arc and disappeared in a ripple of darkness.

Naruto had no clue what was going on but he saw the scorpion jump at Percy to attack. Naruto quickly took out a kunai knife and threw it. It successfully hit the Scorpion and pinned it into the ground before it strike Percy.

Percy looked up to see Naruto jumping down from the tree.

"Percy what on earth was that about?" Naruto asked. "Where did Luke go?"

Percy reluctantly told Naruto what happened. Naruto's eyes widened when he heard that Luke was working for Kronos.

"We got to tell Chiron," Naruto said.

"Tell me something I don't know," Percy said.

…

They found Chiron at Half-Blood Hill with Annabeth.

"Chiron!" Naruto and Percy yelled.

"Percy, Naruto, what—" Chiron said.

"Luke was the thief," Percy said, "He's working for Kronos

"He tried to kill Percy with a pit scorpion," Naruto responded.

Annabeth was in total shock as Chiron's eyes widened. "To the Big House! All of you!"

…

Once inside, Chiron had Percy tell him everything that happened. Chiron had to take human form due to his centaur form could barely fit inside. He seemed concern to what they said.

"I can't believe that Luke…" Annabeth's voice faltered. Her expression turned angry and sad. "Yes. Yes, I _can_ believe it. He was never the same after is quest."

"This must be reported to Olympus," Chiron murmured. "I will go at once."

"Luke is out there right now," Percy said. "I have to go after him."

Chiron shook his head. "No, Percy. The gods—"

"Won't even _talk_ about Kronos," Percy snapped. "Zeus declared the matter closed!"

"Calm down, Percy. You can't go acting out on revenge," Naruto said. "You'll just be playing in the Titan Lord's hands if you did that."

Percy didn't like it but he knew Naruto was right. "Chiron… your prophecy from the Oracle… it was about Kronos, wasn't it? Was I in it? And Annabeth? And Naruto?"

Chiron glanced nervously at the ceiling.

"Percy, it might be the best we don't know about it," Naruto said.

"Still! I want to know!" Percy said.

Chiron's eyes were sympathetic, but sad. "You will be a great hero, child. I will do my best to prepare you. But if I'm right about the path ahead of you…"

Thunder boomed overhead, rattling the windows.

"All right! Fine!" Chiron shouted before sighing in frustration. "The gods have their reasons, Percy. Knowing too much of your future is never a good thing. Until you're ready, you need to train. Naruto is right. Kronos wants to clouded your thoughts with fear and anger to use to his advantage. Do not give him what he wants. Train patiently. Your time will come. But first you must decide your path for the coming year. You must decide whether to stay at Camp Half-Blood year-round, or return to the mortal world for the seventh grade and be a summer camper. Think on that. When I get back from Olymps, you must tell me your decision."

Percy wanted to argue, but knew the discussion was over.

"I'll be back as soon as I can," Chiron promise before turning to the window and saw something. He turned to Annabeth, "My dear, it seems they're here."

Chiron left the room and soon they could hear the sounds of a horse going down the porch and they guess that was Chiron.

"Who's here?" Percy asked Annabeth, "What's going on?"

At first Annabeth was silent.

"Just tell him, Annabeth. He's going to find out later anyways," Naruto said.

Annabeth sighed. "I…I took up yours and Naruto's advice about mailing my dad."

"And?"

"I'm going home for the year, Percy," Annabeth stated.

"You mean to your dad's?" Percy asked.

She nodded. They looked out the window up at Half-Blood Hill. Next to Thalia's tree at the edge of the magical boundaries, a family stood silhouette—two little children, a woman, and a tall man with blonde hair, who was holding a backpack that looked like the one Annabeth gotten from Waterland in Denver.

"We decided to give it one more chance," Annabeth explained, "He even said he'll take me to Washington D.C. for Spring break if we make it that far."

"What about you?" Percy asked Naruto.

"I'm thinking of returning to the city," Naruto said. "I'm sure Athena and Hermes will set me up to go into another school."

"Great." Percy said. "Well, I don't want to be the only one who stays behind. So I guess I will go home too."

"Well, then let's agree to come back next summer," Annabeth said, "We'll hunt down Luke. We'll ask for a quest, and if we don't, we sneak out anyway. Agreed?"

"Agreed," both Naruto and Percy said.

They shook on it and headed to their respected cabins to pack up and leave.

* * *

 **A/N:** This is the end of the story. Out of the 58,771 viewers who stick to the story, thank you.

 **Next Story:** 'The Legacy of Athena & Hermes and the Sea of Monsters'

Summary: Naruto spend his whole school year been anything but peaceful. And things got worse when he finds out Thalia's tree was poisoned, & Grover being kidnapped. Now he has to keep his best friend Percy protected, which would be hard since he been send on the quest for the Golden Fleece with the Daughter of the God who wants him dead.


End file.
